Name: The House with a Clock in Its Walls - Official Trailer 2
Uploaded: 2018-06-28T14:59:17Z
Duration: 2 min 37 s
Channel: Universal Pictures

Screen Rant

The House with a Clock in Its Walls Trailer #2: Jack Black's a Warlock

By Sandy Schaefer

Published Jun 28, 2018

A new trailer for Eli Roth's The House with a Clock in Its Walls reveals more about Jack Black's warlock and his spooky house.

The new trailer is here for Eli Roth's family-friendly gothic horror film The House with a Clock in Its Walls. "Family-friendly" and Eli Roth don't normally go together, but that's part of what makes the Hostel director's new movie so intriguing. Further, the film sees Jack Black return to kid-friendly supernatural horror, after the success of Goosebumps three years ago. Sony also has Goosebumps: Haunted Halloween arriving a few weeks after Roth's film, but it's not clear yet how large a role Black plays in the sequel (beyond voicing the evil Slappy the Dummy again).

Black stars in House with a Clock in Its Walls as Jonathan Barnavelt, a warlock who resides in the small town of New Zebedee. Of course, Jonathan's nephew Lewis (Owen Vaccaro) has no idea that his uncle likes to dabble in the dark arts when he comes to live with him in Jonathan's creaky old manor. Upon learning the truth, however, Lewis finds out there's a very important reason why his uncle resides in his spooky house. The building, it turns out, hides an enchanted clock that is ticking down to doomsday, and only Jonathan, Lewis, and their witchy neighbor Mrs. Zimmerman (Cate Blanchett) can find and destroy it.

Roth's film is based on the 1973 novel by John Bellairs, which features illustrations by the famous Gothic artist Edward Gorey. The House with a Clock in Its Walls was adapted for the screen by writer Eric Kripke (creator of Supernatural and co-creator of Timeless) and produced by Steven Spielberg's Amblin Entertainment. With just a fews month left until its release, Universal has dropped a new trailer for the film online. Check it out in the space above, then take a look at the movie's new poster, below.

Roth has made it known that The House with a Clock in Its Walls is his way of saluting Amblin's beloved '80s fantasies (Gremlins, The Goonies), in the same way his previous films are homages to retro exploitation cinema (Green Inferno, Death Wish). This comes across in The House with a Clock in Its Walls trailers, which blend wonder and terror in ways that bring to mind Amblin's most famous works. That sense of dark whimsy extends to the film's cast, including Kyle MacLachlan (Twin Peaks) and Renée Elise Goldsberry (Altered Carbon) as Mr. and Mrs. Izard, the villainous magic-users responsible for creating said doomsday clock.

Based on the latest footage, Roth has indeed succeeded in making a fun horror fantasy romp for the whole family to enjoy. The House with a Clock in Its Walls trailers further promise some memorable production design and unique set pieces, to bring the movie's kooky setting and story to life. Who knows, Roth's film may even wind up being a better Goosebumps-style movie than the actual Goosebumps sequel that's hitting theaters this fall.