rewrite this title The Texas Chainsaw Massacre reimagining lands Obsession director

There’s a new reimagining of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre in the works at A24, and Variety reports that the project has landed an up-and-coming director. Curry Barker, whose supernatural horror flick Obsession premiered to rave reviews at the Toronto International Film Festival last year, is set to write and direct the new flick.

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre

Barker’s take on the project is being kept under wraps for now, but it’s being developed alongside a Texas Chainsaw Massacre TV series from Glen Powell, Dan Cohen, and director JT Mollner. Earlier this year, Powell teased that the series is shaping up to be something very special.

“Texas Chainsaw is, I think, one of the most brilliant horror movies. It defined the genre and really was such a part of that era, and I feel that A24 is a place that’s really making such special things, and they’re such a custodian and guardian of quality,” he said. “We just really talked to the rights holders. JT Mollner and we have some other creatives around it that are just so passionate about what we’re doing, they have a really strong vision. Everybody around it really cares, and when you have that sort of group mentality protecting something like that – I care about it, everybody cares about it. I know we’re going to do something really special with it, so I’m feeling very very good. It was a long process to get there, but I know we have something really fun ahead.“

Since the original film’s release in 1974, the franchise has expanded with sequels, remakes, and prequels. Although I find many of them to be fun, none have approached the raw energy of the first movie, yet Hollywood keeps trying. Will this latest take on the franchise finally crack the code?

Obsession

The film follows a music store employee who buys a supernatural toy and wishes for his childhood friend Nikki to fall in love with him. As you might imagine, things don’t go quite as planned.

Our own Chris Bumbray caught the film at SXSW last month and loved it. “Barker guides the film with a sure hand and doesn’t shy away from hammering home his message about the difference between real love and obsession,” Bumbray wrote. “Many will note the movie’s gallows humor, with gore-heavy moments happening so randomly and brutally that you can’t help but laugh at how demented they are—only to realize moments later that what you’re watching is, in many ways, a classic horror tragedy.” You can check out the rest of his review right here. Obsession will hit theaters on May 15.

How do you feel about Curry Barker as the director of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre reimagining?