James Wan's next film has officially been christened with the title Malignant. Malignant will be the tenth film to be helmed by Wan, many of which have been horror films. So it's no wonder that New Line Cinema has put their newest horror property in Wan's capable hands.
Wan, who cut his teeth writing and directing the first Saw movie, went on to provide numerous contributions to the Conjuring cinematic universe. These interconnected movies center primarily on the supernatural investigations of Ed and Lorraine Warren (played by Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga), experts on all things spiritual or demonic, as they battle for the lives and souls of families being tormented by the forces of evil. Wan directed Insidious, which kicked off that film series, as well as The Conjuring. He then went on to write and direct the sequels to both movies. The movies have mostly been critical darlings, and the box office take for the franchise has been very favorable.
Today, September 24, principal photography began on Wan's newest production. A photo of a clapper for the first scene in the movie was posted by Wan on Instagram. The title, Malignant, emblazoned across the clapper, was verbally announced by Wan to be official.
Wan is not only on directing duty though, as the screenplay was co-written by himself and his fiancé,Ingrid Bisu. A few cast members have also been signed on to the production, including Annabelle Wallis (X-Men: First Class), Jake Abel (The Lovely Bones), George Young (Containment), Maddie Hasson (Underdogs), Michole Briana White (Encino Man), and Jacqueline McKenzie (Deep Blue Sea).
And that's about all the information that's been publicly released about Malignant thus far, other details being shrouded in mystery. But it's no secret that James Wan himself wrote a graphic novel entitled Malignant Man, which was published in 2011. The story centers on Alan Gates, a terminal cancer patient who makes his peace with his impending death. However, his cancerous tumor reveals itself to actually be a parasite that gifts Gates with supernatural abilities. Discovering an evil secret society hidden underneath the skin of mankind, Gates takes it upon himself to use his unique powers to stop the order's malicious plans.
The book has a history of time spent in film production purgatory. 20th Century Fox acquired the book's film rights in June 2014, with comic book label BOOM! Studios taking on production duties along with Stephen Christy, Ross Richie and Adam Yoelin. In June 2016, Brad Peyton was announced as director, but the position quickly changed hands to Rebecca Thomas in 2017. It now would appear that Wan himself has taken the reigns of the silver screen adaptation of his original story. And it isn't hard to imagine why, given his decorated history of horror movie success. This appears to be a win for both New Line Cinema and the fans.
Source: James Wan/Instagram