Is Salem’s Lot 2024 remake cancelled? Stephen King tweets support for ‘old-school horror’ Warner Bros film

A horror movie remake of Salem’s Lot, one of Stephen King’s earliest novels, has been held up by Warner Bros despite production being completed but the book’s author has questioned why the film has still not been released.

First announced in 2019, the film was then shot in September 2021 and was originally slated for a cinematic release one year later, but an official date has still not been set. The movie, starring Lewis Pullman and Makenzie Leigh, follows a writer who returns to his childhood home town and discovers that it has become prey to a vicious vampire.

Evil Dead Rise usurped Salem’s Lot April 2023 release slot, and on Halloween last year it was rumoured that Warner Bros would instead release the film straight to streaming on Max - four months on we still don’t know when the film will be available to watch.

What has Stephen King said about Salem’s Lot remake?

Salem’s Lot was the second novel published by now internationally recognised American writer Stephen King, who has published over 400 million copies of his more than 70 books.

King was not involved in the development of the upcoming film, but as the author of the source material he was able to watch an advance screening.

On Monday (February 19), King shared on X: “Between you and me, Twitter, I've seen the new SALEM'S LOT and it's quite good. Old-school horror filmmaking: slow build, big payoff. Not sure why WB is holding it back; not like it's embarrassing, or anything. Who knows. I just write the fucking things.”

Has the Salem’s Lot remake been cancelled?

Salem’s Lot has not officially been cancelled, but the movie has been shelved, meaning that it’s in release limbo as Warner Bros decides what to do with it.

The company has a busy release schedule with huge movies including Dune Part II, Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, and Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga set for release over the next couple of months.

Additionally, two upcoming horror films are also on the slate for 2024 - The Watchers coming in June, and Beetlejuice Beetlejuice set for September.

Salem’s Lot is one of three completed Warner Bros films still on its slate but without a confirmed release date, the others being comedy drama Am I OK?, and horror comedy The Parenting. Both of these will be released directly onto Max when a date is set for them, whereas the question of where and even if Salem’s Lot will be released is still unanswered.