Director Sam Raimi on the set of SPIDER-MAN 2.
© Columbia Pictures

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Raimi Rides TO HELL And Back Again..

Two bits of genre news circulating around Sam Raimi this morning and they're from the same press release at Variety. First, Raimi is heading back to his genre roots with a new supernatural thriller called DRAG ME TO HELL, a new story he wrote himself alongside his brother Ivan Raimi. They wrote this spec, previously titled "The Curse", right after they completed 1992's Army of Darkness. The brothers will be financing the film through his Ghost House Prods. shingle with partner Rob Tapert. Both Raimi and Tapert will produce with Grant Curtis, while Josh Donen will exec produce with Mandate's Nathan Kahane and Joe Drake.

"Sam calls it a 'spook-a-blast,' a wild ride with all the chills and spills that 'Evil Dead' delivered, without relying on the excessive violence of that film," Tapert said. "When one has done three very expensive movies, they get used to eating caviar. Sam will have to ponder what it means to come down from the mountaintop for a moment."

"The appeal to Sam on 'Drag Me to Hell' was returning to what he had once done and loved doing, which was entertaining a very specific group of fans and providing a roller coaster ride for them," Tapert said. "He doesn't have the enormous pressure here that goes with handling a hundreds of millions of dollars franchise."

Production will begin early 2008.

Second, the trade confirmed this morning that Raimi is expected to helm THE HOBBIT films for New Line and MGM now that Peter Jackson has made it clear he won't be directing. Here's what Raimi had to say at the 30 Days of Night press junket after a reporter approached him on New Line offering the job..

Raimi said, "There's no better choice to direct 'The Hobbit' than Peter Jackson. I'm a fan of 'The Lord of the Rings' trilogy and Peter Jackson's a brilliant filmmaker and he would be the guy I think everybody would love see direct it. And I hear [New Line and Jackson are] talking, too, from what I read in the trades, I don't really know first hand, hopefully he will direct it and give us his great version of it. If he doesn't direct it and decides to produce it, I'd love to be considered as the director."