Let me kick this off by saying that I’m a massive fan of Nickelodeon’s 90’s kid-horror anthology seriesAre You Afraid of the Dark?. I own every episode on DVD (come on Blu-ray collection!) and, yes, I can hand over some choice episode recommends (see below). And it’s armed with this love of all things The Midnight Society, that one of the upcoming horror movies that I’m looking forward to the most is Paramount’s big-budget feature film adaptation.
And today we have word that the upcoming film has snagged its director in the form ofD.J. Caruso. Caruso is best known for helming such films asxXx: Return of Xander Cage,I Am Number Four,Eagle Eye, andThe Salton Sea. But don’t let that deter you from being excited about the man’s possible involvement with this upcoming kid-horror movie. Caruso also has films likeDisturbiaandTaking Livesunder his belt. But… he also helmed the recent borefestThe Disappointments Room. So I guess we’ll just have to hope he’s gotten his groove back a bit more.
Caruso is apparently “in talks to direct the feature” so this is still within the realm of rumor for the time being. That said, if Caruso does take on the job of directingAre you Afraid of the Dark?he will be doing so with the aid of ascreenplay written by Gary Dauberman. Dauberman is known around the horror community for penning such films asAnnabelle,Annabelle: Creation,IT, andThe Nun, along with upcoming projects such asIT: Chapter Two,Annabelle 3, and DC Universe’sSwamp ThingTV series. Dauberman made his move to directing himself recently as he helmed the upcoming third entry in theAnnabelleseries, which stars Patrick Wilson, Vera Farmiga, Mckenna Grace, and Madison Iseman.
For those of you that didn’t grow up in the ’90s,Are you Afraid of the Dark?was a Canadian horror anthology series that aired on Nickelodeon’s Snick from 1992 to 1996, and then again from 1999 to 2000. It was created by D.J. MacHale and Ned Kandel and recounted ghost stories told by the young members of theMidnight Societyas they gathered around a campfire.
As for the above-mentioned episode recommendations to get you started on the series if you don’t already know the pleasures contained within, start with these two episodes and call me in the morning. First, I recommendThe Tale of the Dead Man’s Float. The episode centers on a (sometimes) invisible demon living in a school’s pool, just waiting to drag kiddies down to watery deaths. It’s creepy as hell. And once you’re finished with that episode, make sure to check out the second episode the show ever produced,The Tale of Laughing in the Dark. This genuinely terrifying tale centers on the ghost of a killer clown (heaven help us) that goes after some ginger brat after said brat steals the nose off the face of his haunted house avatar. Trust me, this episode will give you and your loved one’s nightmares for days.
Paramount is all set to unleash theirAre You Afraid of the Dark?feature filminto theaters come August 14, 2025.Bloody Disgustingfirst delivered the heads up!
