By MICHAEL GINGOLD
While Orion Pictures readies its theatrical reboot of CHILD’S PLAY, with Chucky rechristened “Buddi,” the original doll is headed for the small screen under the stewardship of his longtime creative team.
Variety reports that Syfy has picked up the series development rights to Chucky, with Don Mancini, who wrote the original draft of the first CHILD’S PLAY, penned all the sequels and directed three of them, on board to script and executive-produce the show. David Kirschner, who has also been with the franchise from the beginning, will also executive-produce, as will Nick Ancosta, who’s producing through his Eat the Cat company.
“I’ve long wanted to bring Chucky to television and Syfy is the perfect network for us,” says Mancini, whose most recent feature was CULT OF CHUCKY (pictured). “The show will be a fresh take on the franchise, allowing us to explore Chucky’s character with a depth that is uniquely afforded by the television series format, while staying true to the original vision that has terrorized audiences for over three decades now.”
Syfy has also ordered a pilot for a dark-comic horror series called (FUTURE) CULT CLASSIC, set 18 years in the future in a town terrorized by a serial killer who’s obsessed with 1990s slasher movies. A group of teenagers who discover they’re on his victim list set out to stop him. Tim Kirkby will direct and executive-produce the pilot, which is being written by Shay Hatten.
