In an exclusive report by Borys Kit of The Hollywood Reporter, Gary Dauberman was tapped to be the new director of New Line’s upcoming adaptation of Stephen King’s classic horror novel, Salem’s Lot.
If that name doesn’t ring a bell, it’s likely because Dauberman mostly works behind the scenes as a writer. In fact, he was already onboard to write the film’s screenplay. He was also one of the co-writers on 2017’s It and is credited as the sole writer on the screenplay for 2019’s It Chapter Two.
In addition to Stephen King adaptations, Dauberman has written a number of screenplays for The Conjuring franchise, where he appears to have the creepy doll market cornered. He’s credited as the sole writer on Annabelle and Annanbelle Creation and a co-writer on The Nun. Dauberman made his directing debut on Annabelle Comes Home, which he also co-wrote the screenplay for.
I’ll be honest and say that I’ve never seen any of those films, but have heard that Annabelle is better than the reviews would have you think (but still not great), Annabelle Creation is way better than Annabelle, and Annabelle Comes Home (the one he directed) is pretty good.
I did, however, absolutely love both It movies. I know some folks have legitimate issues with the second one, but I found both to be highly entertaining. I was also impressed at how the they managed to distill so much of the best parts from the original novel, which (like a majority of King’s work) felt like it would never be possible to adapt well.
I’ll admit to being nervous about someone with so little directing experience helming the adaptation of such a seminal piece of modern horror. The fact that Dauberman is both writing and directing the film also puts quite a bit on his shoulders. Thankfully, he’s already shown an appreciation and understanding of Stephen’s work and how to translate it to the big screen. Let’s hope he can do it again.
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