BLUMHOUSE BRINGS RIVER, THE EXORCIST AND A WHOLE LOT MORE TO NEW YORK COMIC CON

Jason Blum and James Wan had plenty to show off at New York Comic Con this weekend. Their annual BlumFest presentation covered everything from original horror films and comic book adaptations to the return of franchises that should have run out of ideas years ago but keep kicking. Some projects are nearly ready for theaters, while some others are finally beginning to make some progress after spending years in development.

A couple of films deserve a closer look, especially now that their trailers are available. The rest of the presentation offered an interesting mixture of new ideas, familiar properties and a few unexpected announcements.

RIVER

There's something wonderfully unsettling about a horror movie that takes an ordinary situation and turns it into an absolute nightmare. That's the premise behind River, a new survival slasher starring Jane Levy (Evil Dead) and Jessica Rothe (Happy Death Day), two actresses who already have a good amount of experience dealing with murderous lunatics between them.

The story follows three estranged siblings who reunite after their father's death and venture into the wilderness to scatter his ashes along a remote river. Their boat breaks down, leaving them stranded without transportation or any reliable means of communication. As if their circumstances weren't unpleasant enough, a masked killer decides to make an already miserable family gathering considerably worse.

Directed by Joshua Giuliano, River premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in September before Universal and Blumhouse acquired the film. The premise is familiar territory for the genre, but I'm interested to see whether they can turn it on its head.

The official trailer arrived today, October 12, giving audiences their first opportunity to see what they put together. River opens in theaters January 15, 2027.

THE EXORCIST: MARTYRS

The Exorcist franchise has had an uneven history since William Friedkin's original film arrived in 1973 to put it mildly. Its various sequels and attempts at revival have produced wildly different results, with 2023's The Exorcist: Believer doing pretty much nothing to restore confidence in the series. Universal is now handing the property to Mike Flanagan, whose previous work includes Doctor Sleep, Midnight Mass and The Haunting of Hill House.

Flanagan's The Exorcist: Martyrs stars Scarlett Johansson as Julie Miller, a New York City detective who helped capture a satanic serial killer known as Father Sunday thirteen years earlier. When another murder bears a disturbing connection to the original case, Miller finds herself investigating something that may extend well beyond conventional criminal behavior.

Chiwetel Ejiofor, Laurence Fishburne, John Leguizamo, Diane Lane and Sasha Calle are among the film's extensive cast. Thankfully, Flanagan is writing and directing an entirely new story rather than continuing the narrative established in Believer, which gives him considerable freedom to explore the supernatural mythology without having to clean up everything that preceded it.

The first trailer debuted during BlumFest and offers a nice little grim combination of religious horror and serial killer thriller. Flanagan has described the project as his darkest work, a substantial claim considering some of the material he's already tackled. There's certainly an opportunity here to give the franchise a new path, and Flanagan has my confidence.

The Exorcist: Martyrs arrives in theaters March 12, 2027.

BUT WAIT, THERE'S MORE WHERE THAT CAME FROM

Blumhouse and Atomic Monster also provided updates on several projects that have been working their way through development. Something Is Killing the Children, based on the comic series by James Tynion IV and Werther Dell'Edera, now has The Hunt director Craig Zobel attached. Meanwhile, Host director Rob Savage is preparing Molepeople, starring LaKeith Stanfield.

There's also another Blair Witch Project film in development, along with a RoboCop television series for Prime Video. Neither received any real update, although both remain part of the company's plans. Seasons, an adaptation of the Reddit horror story My Wife and I Bought a Ranch, was another project shown during the presentation.

The company is also still looking toward the internet for its next generation of horror material. YouTuber MatPat announced a partnership to adapt independent horror games, beginning with Amanda the Adventurer, while creator Heidi Wong will develop an original short inspired by Eastern mythology and folklore. Curry Barker and Cooper Tomlinson are bringing their horror-comedy Anything But Ghosts to theaters on May 7, 2027.

SAW 11 AND PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 8

Of course, a Blumhouse presentation wouldn't be quite the same without beating a few more franchises into submission. James Wan is returning to the world of Saw, the series he created with Leigh Whannell back in 2004. Wan will produce Saw 11, with Mike P. Nelson directing and Whannell also involved. Details about the story remain scarce, although Wan has indicated that they're exploring a different approach to bringing the franchise back.

And finally, there's Paranormal Activity 8, which will be directed by Ian Tuason, whose film Undertone made some noise earlier this year. According to Wan, the production is returning to the very same bedroom in the original house that helped make the first Paranormal Activity so memorable. That first film showed us just how much tension could be generated with a stationary camera, an ordinary house and watching someone sleep. So tuck me in and call me a cuddlebug.

Paranormal Activity 8 is currently scheduled for May 21, 2027.