Universal is setting fire to the powder with the trailer for its new film, inspired by a novel by the famous Stephen King
It’s not just Eleven in Stranger Things who has superpowers and who is being hunted by the government. With Firestarter, Blumhouse will tell the story of another child with incredible potential, except this time, it will probably not be a heroine. Young Charlie has the ability to control fire, a power that literally consumes her and is of great interest to authorities who hope to use it as a weapon. Despite her parents’ efforts to protect her, her power spins out of control. The story is adapted from the novel Charlie by Stephen King, a master in the genre.
It is also difficult not to make the connection with Stranger Things, especially since the writer’s universe inspired the screenwriters of the Netflix series. On the other hand, the tone should be quite different, especially with Blumhouse (Paranormal Activity and American Nightmare) to production. A feature film halfway between horror and superhero film, which will be directed by Keith Thomas. It is to him that we owe the horror feature film The Vigil released in cinemas in July 2020.
This is not the first time that the plot of the book has been brought to the screen. In 1984, Drew Barrymore had already embodied the young Charlie in front of the camera of Mark L. Lester. In this first trailer, we also find some sequences directly inspired by Lester’s film. In music, Blumhouse and Universal have recruited a regular in the genre since it is Cody Carpenter who will sign the score. The composer, son of the illustrious John Carpenter, had set to music Halloween and Halloween Kills respectively in 2018 and 2021 alongside his father. Here he should operate solo.
Zac Efron as a family man
In the casting, we will thus find Zack Efron in the role of Andy McGee. The actor will therefore play the fathers of families alongside Sydney Lemmon (Fear The Walking Dead). The young Charlie will be camped by Ryan Kiera Armstrong who was recently seen in The Tomorrow War on Amazon Prime Video. Kurtwood Smith (That’70s Show) and Gloria Reuben (Marvel’s Cloak & Dagger) are added to the list. Firestarter will be shown in cinemas in France, on June 1 next. In the United States, it enjoys a double release on the Peacock platform and on the big screen.
