Mudbound’s Jason Clarke has entered negotiations to star in Dennis Widmyer and Kevin Kolsch’s Pet Semetary remake.
The remake of Stephen King’s classic 1983 horror novel will be co-helmed by Starry Eyes’ Kolsch and Widmeyer with the most recent screenplay written by Jeff Buhler.
The remake will follow a doctor (Clarke) who moves his family out of the big city to the country. He discovers that they have moved near a pet cemetery that resides next to an ancient American-Indian burial ground.
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When the husband’s toddler son is killed in an auto accident, the father takes the boy’s body to the burial ground, where it is resurrected but is not quite right.
King’s novel has already seen one incarnation adapted for the big screen back in 1989. Directed by Mary Lambert – who was better known for directing music videos for Madonna – and written by King, the film featured Dale Midkiff as the character Clarke will portray in the remake. In 1992, a sequel was released, again directed by Lambert and starring Edward Furlong, Anthony Edwards and Clancy Brown. The sequel references the events of the first film but is focused on all-new characters.
The plot reads thus: When his mother, Renee (Darlanne Fluegel), dies, young Jeff Matthews (Edward Furlong) moves back to his hometown with his father, Chase (Anthony Edwards). Jeff grows friendly with Drew Gilbert (Jason McGuire) at school, who tells him about the Indian burial grounds that bring people and animals back to life, which led to the deaths of the Creed family who used to live in town. Desperately missing his mom, Jeff ignores warnings and buries her corpse, only to have her return in deadly zombie form.
Lorenzo Di Bonaventura, Mark Vahradian, and Steven Schneider are producing.
