Universal PicturesCalling all horror fans: Simon Pegg and Nick Frost are working together on a new serial killer horror film called Svalta.
The stars of Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz have teamed up with Orion Pictures to produce the film, whose title is taken from the name of a fictional Swedish island.
Orion acquired the pitch from Stolen Picture, the company run by Pegg, Frost, and Miles Ketley and which previously made the comedy-horror Slaughterhouse Rulez.
Universal PicturesAs reported by Deadline, the film will follow a family on their summer holiday to a remote Swedish island – Svalta – where they discover a serial killer is on the loose.
Unfortunately for them (but fortunately for us because it’s sure to provide a hell of a lot of entertainment), the locals have zero interest in helping the stranded family of tourists.
All three men will produce the upcoming film, while Frost will write the screenplay alongside Stolen Picture creative directors James Serafinowicz and Nat Saunders.
PAJohn Hegeman, Orion Pictures President, hinted at the fact that the film already reflects Pegg and Frost’s unique partnership.
Hegeman said in a statement, as per Deadline:
We are unbelievably excited to be partnering with Simon, Nick and Miles on Svalta. The story is scary, awesome and crazy, and their unique voice is perfect for this movie. We can’t wait to bring this to the big screen with them.
The film couldn’t have come at a better time either; this year marks the 20th anniversary of the Pegg and Frost partnership, which began in 1999 when the two met on the set of UK sitcom Spaced.
Universal PicturesFrom there the Three Flavours Cornetto trilogy began, the duo starred in Shaun of the Dead (2004), Hot Fuzz (2007), Paul (2011), and The World’s End (2013), before they launched Stolen Picture in May 2017.
Ketley, the CEO of Stolen Picture, said of the new horror:
Orion is the perfect home for the horrifying vision that Nick has conjured up from his maverick brain.
We always said that everything we do has to come from left field and find something unexpected at its centre and with this partnership with John and Dan and their amazing team — Svalta is the perfect project to do that.
Amazing. A release date hasn’t been set for the film just yet but hands up who can’t wait for it?!
Bagsy the first seat in the cinema.
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A Broadcast Journalism Masters graduate who went on to achieve an NCTJ level 3 Diploma in Journalism, Lucy has done stints at ITV, BBC Inside Out and Key 103. While working as a journalist for UNILAD, Lucy has reported on breaking news stories while also writing features about mental health, cervical screening awareness, and Little Mix (who she is unapologetically obsessed with).