A pair of huge horror production companies are about to join forces with Jason Blum and James Wan in advance talks to merge their businesses….
Horror is having a huge year at the box office and now two of the biggest production companies built on scaring the hell out of people are joining forces.
Jason Blum’s Blumhouse Productions and James Wan’s Atomic Monster are currently in advance talks to merge their companies with the two sides nearing a deal.
Blumhouse is responsible for numerous horror franchises and productions including the recent “Halloween” series as well as “The Purge,” “Paranormal Activity,” “Happy Death Day,” “Get Out” and “The Black Phone.” As for Atomic Monster, that company has been behind the entire universe of “The Conjuring” and “Saw” films including numerous spinoffs such as “The Nun” and “Annabelle Comes Home” not to mention “Malignant” as well as “Lights Out” and the upcoming film “M3GAN.”
Together the two companies have earned more than $11 billion at the box office.
Under the new arrangement, the companies would operate under a first-look deal at Universal, which Blumhouse previously signed. Atomic Monster’s developmental deal with Warner Bros. recently came to an end, which further opened the door for this potential partnership to come together.
“We really do complement each other, yin and yang, which is part of what makes this so exciting,” Wan told the New York Times about the deal.
According to reports, Blumhouse and Atomic Monster would continue to operate as separate entities while maintaining creative autonomy and brand identity with films, television and other projects.
Together, the two production companies will expand their reach with Atomic Monster tapping into Blumhouse’s current infrastructure to begin developing new projects across film and TV with hopes to expand into new areas such as gaming, live entertaining and audio such as podcasts.
The news comes as horror has found massive success in theaters in 2022 with films such as “Smile” and “Barbarian” becoming surprise hits not to mention “Terrifier 2,” which became one of the most talked about movies in the fall. While many studios have struggled to find a foothold with audiences this year with dramas, comedies and action thrillers, horror films have continued to produce great numbers with movies that often times have much smaller budgets.
Now with Blumhouse and Atomic Monster looking to join forces, horror will look to continue dominating heading into 2023 and beyond.
H/T: Variety
