Hot on the heels of producing a remake of 1992 slasher Candyman, Jordan Peele has turned his attention to another cult 1990s horror film.
The Get Out and Us director will be producing a remake of The People Under the Stairs, a 1992 horror comedy helmed by horror master Wes Craven (best known for the A Nightmare on Elm Street and Scream franchises). The film will be the first remake of a Wes Craven film since his death in 2015.
With the original praised by critics for its “hard-hitting political statement” and satirical depiction of white suburban conservatism, it sounds like perfect material for a Jordan Peele film. It’s about a young boy and two robbers who break into a house owned by a sinister couple, with the intention of stealing a rare coin collection, and find themselves trapped.
The original film was partly inspired by a real-life news story from the 1970s, when a pair of burglars broke into a house and discovered two children locked inside a cupboard. According to The AV Club, “Craven savoured the irony: a perceived threat to a placid middle-class neighbourhood leading to the discovery of a more insidious evil.” Which, again, sounds extremely Jordan Peele.
As of yet, very few details have been released about the project: it’s still unclear whether Peele will be writing, directing, producing or a combination of all three. In the meantime, Wes Craven fans can look forward to Scream 5, which is currently in production and scheduled for release in January 2022.