EXCLUSIVE: Hammer Films turns a spritely 90 years old later this year, and Sky is getting in on the celebrations.
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The UK pay-TV network has teamed with the iconic horror studio and Cardiff’s Deep Fusion Films to make Hammer: Heroes, Legends and Monsters , which will launch in November, timed to coincide with the legendary production house’s 90th birthday.
The 90-minute feature doc will track Hammer’s progression from a back off in London’s Regent Street to its iconic status within the horror film genre. The company, started by comedian and businessman William Hinds in 1934, made films such as The Curse of Frankenstein , Dracula and The Quartermass Xperiment during the period for which it is best known, making stars out of the likes of Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing.
Deep Fusion co-founder Benjamin Field is helming the doc, with the director revisiting the people in front of and behind the camera who made the operation a byword for horror, and will include numerous key contributors, unseen archive footage and interviews with the likes of Tim Burton, John Carpenter and Joe Dante, whose styles were all influenced by Hammer.
Production has already begun in three separate locations and sets based on the Hammer classics such as Dracula. Field is known for his unusual storytelling and dynamic visual styles, so it’s fair to assume we’ll see Hammer Horror tropes presented in a different way.
Hammer Films CEO and Chairman John Gore is executive producer and his company will manage the international sales rights outside of the UK.
“As a lifelong fan of Hammer Films, I am incredibly proud to celebrate our 90th anniversary with this remarkable, insightful and celebratory documentary,” said Gore. “ Heroes, Legends and Monsters pays tribute to the people behind Hammer – in front of, and behind the camera – and sets the stage for an exciting future. Hammer has always been at the forefront of horror, and with the dedication of a talented team and the support of Sky, we are poised to continue thrilling audiences with Hammer magic for the next decade and beyond. Here’s to the next 90 years of Hammer and its heroes, legends and monsters.”
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Phil Edgar-Jones, director of Sky Arts, said: “At Sky Arts we’re all about bringing legends to the screen, and we couldn’t be happier to be sharing the thrills and chills of Hammer’s trailblazing work in gothic horror with our audiences. Prepare for demons, vampires, mummies, and perhaps the odd abominable snowman too.”
Deep Fusion co-founder Field said Heroes, Legends and Monsters would “aim to honour and celebrate” Hammer’s legacy in moviemaking and “provide an insightful, entertaining experience for both long-time fans of horror, as well as new converts to the genre. And we couldn’t hope for better partners on this journey into the bloody heart of horror than Sky and Hammer Films.”
Hammer’s golden period could be traced from the mid-1950s through the 1960s, when iconic films such as Lee’s Dracula were followed up by monster shockers such as The Gorgon and The Plague of the Zombies and psycho-thrillers such as Taste of Fear and Paranoiac .
After the original company went into liquidation in 1979, the brand struggled on until experiencing a revival under Dutch formats guru John de Mol, who acquired it through his investment vehicle in 2007. That led to films such as 2012’s The Woman in Black and 2014’s The Quiet Ones .
Tony Award-winning theater producer and Gore resurrected the company once again in August last year, acquiring the Hammer Film Productions brand name and associated companies through his John Gore Organization. “Active” plans are afoot to launch new productions, while a direct-to-consumer shop launches later this year, which will offer merchandize for Hammer films and remastered editions of the movies.
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