Gans, Avary and how to improve the next film
Silent Hill 2‘s future was looking pretty foggy.
After grossing nearly $100 million in worldwide box office receipts, there was the question of whether a follow-up to Christophe Gans’ 2006 adaptation of the Silent Hill video game was even going to happen. After all, it was met with a mixed audience reaction. Some were dissatisfied with the story; others appreciated the familiar villains and brutal violence.
Then, in September, Davis Films officially announced Roger Avary (Pulp Fiction) was returning to pen the next entry and production was to rev up shortly after Resident Evil: Afterlife wrapped in Toronto, Canada. Avary, however, was sentenced to prison for a year in the weeks following this news, leaving the status of the sequel up in the air.
“Well, we have had a bit of a hiccup with Roger,” admits Afterlife and Silent Hill producer Don Carmody in an exclusive chat with Shock Till You Drop. “We’re just debating whether we can wait for him. He’s writing the script for sure.”
Although actress Radha Mitchell has voiced interest in starring again (her involvement is unconfirmed right now), one original key player won’t be back: director Gans. “I don’t think he wants to come back. He’ll have some input for sure. In his mind, I think he wanted to do the first one and for this he’s very happy to consult, but I think he wants to direct something new,” says Carmody who has some definite ideas about how to improve the Silent Hill franchise’s big screen counterpart.
“I think we need to make it a little more accessible to the movie-going public,” he says frankly. “Silent Hill is not a blockbuster game like Resident Evil or the other games out there. It’s a connoisseurs’ game. It has its own, rabid fan base. They’re not cheap, these things. You have to appeal not only to the gamers, you have to appeal to a wider audience. So we have to get some story in there that helps explain a bit more. I think that’s all happening. Of course, [the story] is going to happen years later and the main character – without giving too much away – is much older and representative to the movie-going public which is in that age group.”
Some will disagree, but I enjoyed the almost Fulci-esque over-the-top gore and ambiguity Gans brought to the first film, even if it was a bit messy. It sounds like the next film is going to be a more straight-forward trip for those who can’t wrap their head around the weird aspects of this series. We’ll see! More updates as they come in…
Source: Ryan Rotten, Managing Editor
