Hammer Horror to Ink Books With Blood

If you’re familiar with classic horror, Hammer Film Productions will drum up instant images of 1950s/60s/70s monster sequels, such as The Revenge of Frankenstein and the Christopher Lee Dracula films. Since the seventies, Hammer has survived through British television specials and straight to DVD productions.

Now, Hammer is planning a resurgence into cinemas by re-releasing some of their classics, along with signing a deal with U.K. literary agency PFD for future book deals based on their properties.

“Hammer is an iconic household name with a loyal fanbase and the raft of forthcoming initiatives will create a whole new generation of devotees,” said Caroline Michel, CEO of PFD. The deal will “bring new life to the brand with exciting contemporary writers.”

I’m imagining a whole slew of cheesy Hammer dime novels in grocery stores, and that’s not entirely a bad thing. The Hammer House is also currently wrapping up production on The Resident, directed by newcomer Antti Jokinen and starring Watchmen’s Jeffrey Dean Morgan alongside Hillary Swank and Christopher Lee. The film, which centers around a frightening landlord of a Brooklyn loft, is Hammer’s first major release since 1979’s The Lady Vanishes, which was responsible for nearly bankrupting the studio.

Perhaps bigger than The Resident is Hammer’s production of the Let the Right One In remake by Matt Reeves. It’s an exciting time for the studio, and it’s great to see such a large scale resurgence from a horror icon that was founded in 1934.