Warner Bros. Pictures has decided to no longer release the new film adaptation of Stephen King’s classic book Salem’s Lot in theaters, according to Variety.
The studio will instead make the film available directly on Warner Bros. Discovery’s streaming service HBO Max.
Infinite delay
The film was originally set to hit theaters on September 9, 2022, then was moved to April 2023, then fall 2023, and has now been pulled from the calendar altogether.
There was some speculation that the Gary Dauberman-directed film would be just like Batgirl would never appear and be treated as a tax deduction, but that is no longer the case.
Shortage of content
According to Variety, the move to streaming of the film would not have to do with the quality of the film, but more with the fact that HBO Max is facing a shortage of content due to the ongoing actors’ strike.
And seen Salem’s Lot has been completed for a year, the film could well be launched as a special event.
Bloodthirsty vampires
In Salem’s Lot we see Lewis Pullman as author Ben Mears, a man who returns to his hometown of Jerusalem’s Lot, but soon discovers that the village is slowly but surely being taken over by vampires.
Other actors appearing in the film include Alfre Woodard, Bill Camp, William Sadler, Makenzie Leigh, John Benjamin Hickey, Pilou Asbæk, Jordan Preston Carter and Spencer Treat Clark.
The famous book was adapted into a film twice before, in 1979 and 2004. Both versions were miniseries that were not very well received.
