Scott Derrickson, Maggie Levin Tackling Adaptation of Horror Novel ‘Ghost Eaters’ for Screen Gems (Exclusive)
The Black Phone filmmaker Scott Derrickson has teamed up with his wife, filmmaker Maggie Levin, to tackle an adaptation of the horror novel Ghost Eaters.
Screen Gems, which has a first-look with Derrickson’s Crooked Highway banner, is behind the project and has picked up the rights to the bestseller written by Clay McLeod Chapman.
Levin will write and direct the adaptation. Derrickson, C. Robert Cargill and Vince Cheng will develop and produce via Crooked Highway. The project is in early development.
Chapman’s novel has been described as a terrifying supernatural descent into the depths of grief and addiction. It follows a group of friends who discover a drug called Ghost, which allows them to see the dead. But Ghost has unfathomable side effects, and as the book jacket says, once you take it, you can never go back.
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The book scored many accolades when it was published three years ago. It was named one of Vulture‘s best horror novels of 2022, Paste’s best horror books of 2022, Book Riot’s best horror novels of 2022, and Crime Reads’ best horror fiction books of the same year. It was also a September 2022 Library Reads pick and an October 2022 Indie Next Pick.
Chapman has earned Bram Stoker and Shirley Jackson Award nominations for such horror novels as Wake Up and Open Your Eyes, What Kind of Mother, and Whisper Down the Lane. He recently signed a three-book deal with Tor Nightfire, which will kick off with Mr. Lonelyhearts in 2027. Chapman has also worked in the comics and film spaces.
Levin previously wrote and directed My Valentine, a feature-length episode of the Hulu/Blumhouse horror anthology series titled Into the Dark. She also wrote and directed an original segment of V/H/S/99, which premiered at TIFF in 2022 and was picked up by Shudder.
She worked as a second unit director on Derrickson’s big-budget AppleTV+ monster movie The Gorge, one of the most-watched movies on the platform, as well as his Black Phone. She handled similar duties on his upcoming sequel, Black Phone 2, which opens in theaters this October.
Levin is repped by WME and Brillstein Entertainment Partners. Chapman is repped by Gotham Group and Ziffren.
