Warner Bros. Pictures has set an official release date for Aquaman director James Wan’s upcoming New Line Cinema horror film Malignant.
According to Deadline, Warner Bros Pictures has set Malignant‘s release date for August 14, 2020. It’ll be made under the auspices of Wan’s own Atomic Monster Productions, and received a California Film Commission Film & Television Tax Credit, so will be filmed in the Golden State. The article points out that this choice positions the film in direct competition at the box office with Escape Room 2, The One and Only Ivan, and Nobody.
Before venturing into blockbuster filmmaking with Furious 7 and Aquaman, James Wan was recognized as one of the most critically-acclaimed horror movie directors. His filmography includes Saw, Dead Silence, Death Sentence, Insidious, The Conjuring, Insidious: Chapter 2 and The Conjuring 2. Malignant marks James Wan’s first horror film in four years, following The Conjuring 2.
So far, very little confirmed information about the film is available, but if Wan and Bisu’s likely source material is any indication, Malignant will fall more on the supernatural side of the director’s oeuvre, while also incorporating elements of science fiction and body horror. Based on the amount of potential source material, as well as Wan’s proven track record of spawning and steering lucrative franchises, Malignant might have the potential to become the next Insidious or The Conjuring.
James Wan is expected to return to Atlantis to direct Aquaman 2 after he finishes work on Malignant. Aquaman crossed the $1 billion mark and became the highest-grossing film based on a DC Comics character.
