So remember all these weeks when John and I were pushing you to go see Paranormal Activity? And for the most part you all did it, right? I mean, the film was #1 last week and is still going strong. Of course that was all our doing. Anyway, if I had known this could be the possible outcome I would've tempered my enthusiasm a little.
In an interview with The Star, Eduardo Sanchez, co-director of The Blair Witch Project revealed that work is already underway on a third chapter, thanks largely in part to the success of Paranormal Activity. The Blair Withc Project is the father of the "found footage" genre that Paranormal Activity emulates. Back in 1999 it went on to gross upwards of $240M worldwise based mostly on internet buzz and viral marketing campaigns.
Sanchez indicates that they've already done exploratory research in the Seneca Creek State Park in Maryland where the original Blair Witch was filmed. The story would do the smart thing and totally ignore the awful, studio garbage that was Blair Witch 2: Book of Shadows. The hope is to have the original three stars(yay, Heather Donahue!) return for brief cameos most likely in flashback. Sanchez had this to say also...
"We're at the step where we're about to pitch to Lionsgate, which owns the movie rights now. It's pretty much up to them. They can completely squash it or greenlight it."
Well, that didn't take long. Hollywood has an annoying habit of copying whatever's successful. If a disaster movie hits big, we see an endless flood of them. End of the world films? A dime a dozen nowadays. Now it looks like the "found footage" genre is back in full swing. It's been awhile since I watched Blair Witch, but I remember liking it mainly due to the atmosphere it created. It was extremely good at what it set out to do, much like Paranormal Activity was. Whether or not they can recapture that feeling has yet to be seen.
