Lindsay-Abaire confirmed he’d been approached by MGM and offered the job, but emphasized that no deal had been reached and stressed that he was not yet even sure he wanted to take it. (Abaire’s latest play, Good People, starring Frances McDormand, just wrapped its limited engagement on Broadway a little over a week ago; both People and McDormand are nominated for Tony Awards.)
It’s understandable of playwrights to be wary of big studios. But MGM’s new bosses — Spyglass Entertainment principals Roger Birnbaum and Gary Barber — are co-financiers who know something about rebooting a beloved classic: They co-financed Paramount’s big bet on JJ Abrams Star Trek reboot. As such, they also seem to be resisting Hollywood’s usual modus operandi of hiring a cheap commercial director, some CW stars, and adding another roman numeral: Insiders tell us MGM has no creative parameters for a Poltergeist remake — it would be Lindsay-Abaire’s to shape in whatever fashion he chooses, should he want the job.
It’s also clear why MGM is interested in the landmark Poltergeist franchise; horror need not be expensive to be successful, as long as it's smart. Oren Peli’s 2009 hit Paranormal Activity was made for $15,000 and grossed $193 million worldwide,and last year's Insidious (directed by Saw's James Wan) was made for $1.5 million, and grossed $70 million worldwide. The original Poltergeist was relatively cheap, too; it cost a little more than $10 million back in 1982 — less than $25 million in today’s dollars — but grossed eleven times that worldwide.
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