SALEM’S LOT: Vampire Film Remake Bypassing Theaters to Premiere on Max

Remake of 1979 Horror Movie Going Straight to Max

It has been revealed that the long anticipated Salem’s Lot remake will be premiering on Max rather than at a theater near you.

A new remake of Salem’s Lot has been a long time in the making. Writer/director Gary Dauberman’s take on Stephen King’s tale has been delayed a couple of times and is eventually going to show on Warner Bros. Discovery’s streaming platform, Max, instead of on movie theater screens. This piece of information seems to be coming from a reliable source.

This new horror picture is a remake of the 1979 miniseries, Salem’s Lot, which was a big success in its time for fans of the story’s author, Stephen King. While the SAG-AFTRA strike has left the streaming service lacking future products, the new horror movie will give subscribers a reason to stay connected to Max. The upcoming film was shot back in 2021 during the pandemic but production delays served to change the picture’s release date a couple of times. It should have come out in spring 2023, though. Many people believed Salem’s Lot would be taken off of Warner Bros.’ future movies list. But, it now seems likely the movie is actually going to come out after all unlike a less lucky Warner Bros picture, Batgirl. Producer James Wan’s latest, Salem’s Lot, just won’t be a theatrical release.

Lewis Pullman is prominently featured in the updated King adaptation but the movie also highlights a cast that includes such performers as Makenzie Leigh, Bill Camp, Pilou Asbaek, the always terrific Alfre Woodard and William Sadler. Screen veteran Woodard is certainly the most accomplished cast member but those other stars are also inspiring hope that Salem’s Lot could actually hold a candle to the 1979 two-part picture.

In 2004, there was another attempt at Salem’s Lot with heavy hitters Rob Lowe and Donald Sutherland which was also pretty successful in its own right. Could the third time be the charm for Salem’s Lot with this new version being the best? I wouldn’t count on that kind of success quite yet. Though Warner Bros.’ strategy to save Max with content during the strike sounds realistic, wouldn’t they want to release this kind of potentially money-making film to theaters to enhance profits? This property could be successful at the box-office as many young viewers are unaware of the earlier adaptations of 1975’s Stephen King book. The truth is this vampire story has always been more suited to television than movie theaters and this time is probably no exception. But with Woodard on board, there will definitely be much interest when this movie arrives on Max.

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