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Another spcial media horror filmmaker is getting a shot in Hollywood, and this time it’s Spencer Lackey, the creator who has built a massive following by turning strange ideas into bite-sized nightmares.
Lackey has been hired to write and direct Lust, a new horror feature from Neon, Blumhouse Atomic Monster, and Spooky Pictures.
Plot details are being kept secret for now, although the title does sound suspiciously close to Obsession, another recent horror movie from a filmmaker who got his start online.
The project puts Lackey in business with some major horror players. Steven Schneider, whose producing credits include Paranormal Activity, will produce for Spooky Pictures, while Jason Blum and James Wan are producing through Blumhouse Atomic Monster. Neon and Blumhouse Atomic Monster will co-finance the film.
It’s a major leap for Lackey, but not a particularly surprising one. The filmmaker has around 7 million followers across Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube, where he has developed a following with short-form horror that frequently mixes creepy imagery with wonderfully ridiculous concepts.
He has starred in much of his own material, including one memorable bit involving a monster watching him do laundry.
His work has already started moving beyond social media. Lackey made the Mike Flanagan-produced liminal-space short You Are Here, which played the festival circuit last year and helped show what he could do with a more traditional filmmaking format.
Lackey spoke about the changing relationship between Hollywood and online filmmakers in an interview with last year, saying:
“Industry folks are starting to take digital creators more seriously. Sure, there’s a difference between making a TikTok and making a feature, but a lot of the same creative muscles are being exercised.”
Hollywood certainly seems ready to test that idea. A few months ago, agents, managers, and producers were surveyed about which online filmmakers could follow the path of Curry Barker and Kane Parsons. Lackey was one of the creators whose name repeatedly came up. Now he has his feature directing opportunity.
Barker’s Obsession and Parsons’ Backrooms became major box office stories over the summer, providing more evidence that filmmakers who developed their skills and audiences on YouTube and social media can bring those viewers with them into theaters.
That makes Lust another interesting test of where horror filmmaking is heading. Studios don’t have to search exclusively through film schools, festivals, or traditional Hollywood circles for new directors anymore.
Creators are building audiences online while essentially producing their own miniature proving grounds, experimenting with concepts and figuring out what gets a reaction.
Lackey’s particular brand of strange, compact horror could be a cool fit for a feature, especially with Schneider, Blum, and Wan helping shepherd the project. The big question is what Lust actually is about.
Source: THR
