What’s old is new again…and it’s still very scary.
British horror label Hammer Films this week teamed up with the UK’s Network Distributing–forming Hammer Studios, Ltd.–in an effort to restore its vast store of horror classics, according to a report in Variety.
The new company–led by Hammer chief executive Simon Oakes and Network managing director Tim Beddows–will invest “both in restoration and new production development” from Hammer’s “owned and newly created IP,” according to a statement.
Network Distributing, as explained, has been “mining the vaults of TV companies and film studios since 1997, unearthing cult programs and films, and making them available on home video and digital formats,” according to the company. Now, the belief is, Network will do the same with the legendary Hammer films.
Oakes said this partnership will “professionalize the restoration and creation of elements that are essential for distribution of the Hammer library across all media.” He added that Network will also “build on the legacy of Britain’s most iconic film brand–one that started on 1934 and is alive in 2021.”
As longtime horror fans know, Hammer Films has been a major force in the genre down through the years, having released more than 150 films since 1934–with one-third of those being horror-related. Many iconic actors have starred in Hammer productions, including Peter Cushing (as Baron Victor Frankenstein and Abraham Van Helsing), Christopher Lee (as Dracula) and Oliver Reed (in The Curse of the Werewolf).
The label’s classics include the Dracula, Frankenstein and Mummy series, as well as The Gorgon, The Phantom of the Opera (1962) and The Two Faces of Dr. Jekyll. More recently, Hammer Films has produced such movies as The Quiet Ones (2014) and The Lodge (2019).
Keep reading Horror News Network for the latest from Hammer Studios, Ltd.
