Stephen King’s ‘Salem’s Lot’ Gets Movie Adaptation with Gary Dauberman at the Helm

Seemingly a new staple name in the modern horror genre, director Gary Dauberman will be handling another spooky effort in the vein of a Stephen King classic—Salem’s Lot. The classic King vampire tale was recently upped to movie status with James Wan, Roy Lee, and Mark Wolper producing (via The Hollywood Reporter).

Dauberman is a known fixture in the Conjuring universe, having recently helmed the upcoming movie Anabelle Comes Home and writing the script for Anabelle, Anabelle: Creation, and The Nun. He also wrote the follow-up to Andy Muschietti’s take on Pennywise the clown, It: Chapter Two. Wan and Dauberman also produced the latest Conjuring-related movie, The Curse of La Llorona, and are set to spearhead the DC Universe’s Swamp Thing series (with Dauberman attached as a writer of the show’s first episode).

Salem’s Lot, on the other hand, was King’s second book after his hit debut title, “Carrie.” It follows the story of author Ben Mears as he returns to his hometown of Salem’s Lot to write about the Marsten House. Ben believes that the house contains an evil force that entices evil beings to dwell in it. Ben later discovers that the house is now owned by antique dealers Richard Straker and partner Kurt Barlow. Slowly, it’s revealed that the town of Salem’s Lot is being overrun by vampires, as a mysterious force turns them into one slowly. Ben then assembles a group of his own to battle the rising threat of the vampire townsfolk.

Salem’s Lot had two small screen adaptations in 1979 and 2004 respectively. The former was a TV movie starring David Soul as Ben and James Mason as Richard. The latter was a two-episode limited series starring Rob Lowe and Andre Braugher.

The movie is currently in development with a release date to be announced soon.