Blair Witch Star Blasts Reboot And Lionsgate

Jason Blum and Blumhouse are rebooting the massively successful 1999 found footage horror movie which was announced at CinemaCon.

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blair witch project reboot

Blair Witch is getting the reboot treatment courtesy Jason Blum and his Blumhouse production company which was announced by Lionsgate recently at CinemaCon, with a star of the original 1999 found footage horror movie, Joshua Leonard, none too happy.

Leonard took to Instagram to blast Lionsgate for screwing them over, as the flick is reported to only have a budget of $35,000 but brought in a whopping $250 million.

“My frustration is compounded b/c I’ve been trying to get @lionsgate to engage for over a month about a BWP charity screening I’m putting together for @opositivefest to raise money for artists without healthcare, and NO ONE will get back to me,” posted Leonard.

He goes on to offer details about the original The Blair Witch Project and what happened at Lionsgate including they were told the movie could lose money and they would actually owe the studio money; that they had to go to court to get the rights to their real names used in the movie back, and they only made $300k.

“There were many factors that made BWP a success: timing, marketing, etc. But there was also the FACT that us weirdos got together, with virtually no resources, AND MADE A FILM THAT WORKED! Can we just go on record and say that the film itself is a huge part of why we’re still talking about it 25 years later?” said Leonard.

Leonard added, “I’m so proud of our little punk-rock movie, and I LOVE the fans who keep the flames burning. But at this point, it’s 25 years of disrespect from the folks who’ve pocketed the lion’s share (pun intended) of the profits from OUR work, and that feels both icky and classless.”

blair witch

Production designer responds

The production designer on the original, Ben Rock, also filled in THR, that, so far, none of the original creators have been contacted for the reboot and says none of them were involved with the 2000 sequel or the 2016 follow-up. The article does say Rock is hopeful they will be contacted this time around.

Ben Rock also tweeted the following:

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Matt McGloin
Matt McGloin created, designed and launched Cosmic Book News in 2008, an independent website that covers entertainment news including movies, comics, tv, video games and more.

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