Variety reports that John Cusack, whose only previous genre foray was the psychothriller IDENTITY, will star in Dimension’s film version of Stephen King’s short story “1408.” He’ll play a man who specializes in debunking allegedly supernatural phenomena, but is forced to face real horrors after checking into the titular room at the Dolphin Hotel. Mikael Hafstrom, whose acclaimed thriller EVIL is about to open domestically via Magnolia Pictures, will direct from a script by Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski, whose credits include ED WOOD. “This film is so much a one-man show,” Hafstrom tells the trade. “It’s quite a contained drama. It is a horror film if you want to put a label on it, but the way I see it, it’s much more an inner journey of this character.” Hafstrom helmed DERAILED for Dimension parent The Weinstein Co. last year.
“1408,” which rolls this summer under producer Lorenzo Di Bonaventura, has bounced among a few writers, including MIMIC’s Matt Greenberg and, before him, Eli Roth, who was also set to direct. As was widely reported yesterday, Dimension has signed Roth to script and helm another King project, a feature adaptation of the author’s new novel CELL. “1408” was originally issued in an audiobook titled BLOOD AND SMOKE before appearing in the 2002 anthology tome EVERYTHING’S EVENTUAL.
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