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Warner Bros. Pushes ‘Salem’s Lot’ Theatrical Release Date

The forthcoming feature adaptation of Stephen King’s 1975 vampire novel won’t sink its fangs into cinema audiences until next year.

Warner Bros. is pushing back its theatrical release date for Salem’s Lot. The forthcoming Stephen King adaptation was previously slated to open September 9, 2022, but has now moved to April 21, 2023.

Gary Dauberman, a seasoned horror screenwriter whose other King-based features include 2017’s It and its 2019 sequel, It Chapter Two, is writing, directing, and producing this version of Salem’s Lot. The film stars Lewis Pullman, Makenzie Leigh, Alfre Woodard, John Benjamin Hickey, Bill Camp, Jordan Preston Carter, and Pilou Asbaek. James Wan, Michael Clear, Roy Lee, and Mark Wolper are also set to produce.

Set in 1975, Salem’s Lot tells the story of an author, Ben Mears, who, upon revisiting his hometown to find inspiration for his next book, finds that its locals are slowly transforming into vampires. In 1979, the tale was adapted as a two-part miniseries, just four years after King published the novel. The miniseries was helmed by Tobe Hooper (The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, Poltergeist), and was rebooted, again as a two-parter, under the direction of Mikael Salomon in 2004.

Warner also announced that The Last Train to New York - its planned remake of the Korean 2016 zombie gem Train to Busan - is no longer on the studio’s release schedule. (The new opening date for Salem’s Lot was initially held by The Last Train to New York, and no replacement for that date has yet been disclosed.)

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Max Weinstein is a writer and editor based in Los Angeles. He is the Editor-at-Large of 'Dread Central' and former Editorial Director of 'MovieMaker.' His work has been featured in 'Cineaste,' 'Fangoria,' 'Playboy,' 'Vice,' and 'The Week.'