Well, well, well… looks like things are getting nasty in the war between horror big cheese, Lionsgate’s Saw franchise, and the new kid on the block, Paramount’s Paranormal Activity.
Last week, Paramount hired **Saw VI **director Kevin Greutert to direct Paranormal Activity 2, the sequel to Oren Peli’s surprise sleeper smash, which had been lined up for a Halloween release… around the same time as Saw VII.
That, it seems, has stoked the ire of Lionsgate bosses, for today the company removed Saw VII director David Hackl from the project and exercised its option to bring Greutert back, meaning that – for now – the biggest challenge to their franchise’s crown is without a director. Ouch.
At first glance, it would seem to be a win-win situation for Lionsgate… but Greutert, it seems, isn’t overly happy about being forced to direct a movie, ostensibly against his will, and has been more than open about it on his blog. Unfortunately, and perhaps understandably, he’s taken those comments down and replaced them with:
“I’m in the middle of something really terrible right now, as anyone who has come to this site probably knows. While I fight for justice in this, the important thing is to avoid giving in to hatred and anger, because these emotions are life killers.”
It’s tricky to know where either franchise will go from here – Greutert could be forgiven if he just turns up and phones in Saw VII, but we imagine that professional pride would stop him from doing so. While, with that October release date weighing heavily on **Paranormal Activity 2 **– not to mention the challenges of coming up with a sequel to a film that really doesn’t need it – the race is on for Paramount to find a new director.
Of course, if pettiness could be put aside for a few seconds to let clarity reign, there’s a solution on the table: don’t make either movie let Greutert direct** Paranormal Activity 2**, and bring Hackl, another innocent party who's been treated somewhat shabbily, back on for Saw VII. Somehow, though, we have a feeling that the bad blood between the two studios and the two franchises may have just begun…