Despite a compelling concept and a talented creator in writer Joe Hill, Locke & Key has had real trouble making its way from the comics page to the screen. It's back at the pilot stage with hope it might actually come to life as a series, as Doctor Strange director Scott Derrickson and Lost/Colony's Carlton Cuse are aboard to make it for US streaming service Hulu.
Locke & Key, which debuted via IDW Publishing in 2008 written by Hill and illustrated by Gabriel Rodriguez, is a complex, sprawling tale that has a history going back to the American Revolution. But the focus is on Nina Locke and her children Tyler, Kinsey and Bode, who are trying to start a new life after surviving an unspeakable horror. Trying to rebuild, they move to the family home known as Keyhouse in Lovecraft, Massachusetts. There, they discover magical keys that can open portals that are also being sought by a terrifying, hate-filled creature who has his own designs on the portals.
The project has been as far as pilot stage before, as Fox Television developed it in 2010. It never made it to series, but the title wouldn't go away – Universal looked into making it as a movie. Finally, last year, Hill took matters into his own hands, developing the script along with Cuse, and Derrickson was quick to sign on to direct the pilot when he got the finished draft.
If it goes to series, Cuse, who recently finished up working on Bates Motel, will run the show. According to Deadline, Derrickson is scheduled to shoot several episodes should that happen and is then going to be making the Doctor Strange sequel, though that has yet to be officially confirmed or dated by Marvel.