By Justina Bonilla
The Welcome to the Blumhouse series, a VOD collaboration between Blumhouse Television and Amazon Prime Video, has announced the next four films to complete its eight-film TV series. Gigi Saul Guerrero (The Purge (TV Series) , La Quinceañera) and Ryan Zaragoza will each direct one of the four films which will be released in 2021.
The suspenseful thrillers will continue to highlight female and emerging filmmakers, and diverse casts; and will launch next year on Prime Video in over 240 countries and territories worldwide. The “Welcome to the Blumhouse” program continues the legacy of original, elevated, genre storytelling. Centered around unsettling themes of institutional horrors and personal phobias, the films tap into people’s deepest fears. These social thrillers present a distinctive vision and unique perspective.
“Coming off the successful launch of the first four films of the program, which has surpassed our expectations, we are excited to reveal the next chapter coming in 2021,” said Jennifer Salke, Head of Amazon Studios. “The spine-tingling, edge of your seat thrills continues in this next collection of titles that will surely entertain, surprise and shock our global customers.”
The Welcome to the Blumhouse series has hired a wide variety of diverse and emerging talent in front of and behind the camera with their first four horror films Black Box, Nocturne, Evil Eye, and The Lie. Each of these films were original social thrillers, unique to each filmmaker. Behind the camera talent included cinematographers Hilda Mercado and Carmen Cabana who captured the captivating visuals of Black Box and Nocturne respectively.
The Manor, Black as Night, Madres, and Bingo are the next four films in the Blumhouse series. These four films will to be released in 2021. Here is a small peek at these films
The Manor
Axelle Carolyn, Director/Writer
Synopsis: Judith, an elderly woman, is placed in a historic nursing home, after suffering a stroke. Soon, she notices something supernatural impacting her and her fellow nursing home residents. Despite her condition, the only way to escape the unknown supernatural presence, is to persuade those responsible for her care that she is without doubt healthy enough to be discharged.
Cast: Barbara Hershey, Bruce Davison, Nicholas Alexander, Jill Larsen, and Fran Bennett
Black as Night
Maritte Lee Go, Director
Synopsis: During the summer time, in New Orleans, a teenage girl struggling with self-esteem issues, battles vampires, with her best friend, a boy she has a secret crush on. As her self-confidence grows thought her vampire battles, will she ever find the confidence to tell her best friend her feelings for him?
Writer: Sherman Payne; Cast: Fabrizio Guido, Asjha Cooper, Craig Tate, and Keith David.
Madres
Ryan Zaragoza, Director
Synopsis: In 1970s California, a young couple, who are expecting their first child, movie to a migrant farming community. Disturbed by the strange pregnancy symptoms and nightmarish visions, the young mother-to-be investigates to see if what she is experiencing is influenced by a local legendary curse, or something worse.
Writers: Marcella Ochoa & Mario Miscione. Cast: Tenoch Huerta, René Mena Joseph Garcia, Ariana Guerra, Jennifer Patino, Evelyn Gonzalez, Elpidia Carrillo, Composer Geraldo Garcia Jr. and cinematographer Felipe Vara de Rey.
This is Zaragoza’s first feature length film. His previous directorial work includes the short films The Painter, Bebé, and Sterling and TV episodics.
Bingo
Gigi Saul Guerrero, Director
Synopsis: A lively group of elderly friends, led by the spunky and bold Lupita, are fighting against the gentrification of their beloved barrio. However, they face the biggest challenge of their lives, when their treasured Bingo hall is in the process of being sold to a highly influential tenant, more powerful than money.
Written by Shane McKenzie & Guerrero Cast: Not yet announced
Bingo will be Saul Guerrero’s second feature film collaboration as a director and writer for Blumhouse Television. Her first collaboration was with Culture Shock, an episode of the Hulu series Into the Dark. It’s the highest-rated film of the Into the Dark series, on Rotten Tomatoes with a 100% rating.