New Silent Hill Movie: Will it flop again or not?

Aside from Resident Evil, Silent Hill is among the well-known horror franchises in gaming and movies. But Silent Hill pales in comparison to Resident Evil in terms of Hollywood success. Surprisingly, a new Silent Hill movie is currently in the making and will arrive by 2023.

From the games to the new Silent Hill movie

Silent Hill first graced the video gaming world in 1999. Team Silent developed this game and was published by Konami. The original game is a survival horror game that uses a third-person view. It follows the story of Harry Mason, whose adopted daughter was missing in the town of Silent Hill. He then encounters a cult in the town and discovers the dark truth behind his adopted daughter’s origins.

The first Silent Hill game got positive reviews from critics and fans. One defining feature was its transition from the usual survival horror games of that time to a more psychological horror approach. Due to its commercial success, game sequels followed Silent Hill 2 and Silent Hill 3 in 2001 and 2003. In 2009, Climax Studios released a reimagined version of the original game named Silent Hill: Shattered Memories.

After dominating the gaming scene, the franchise tried its luck in Hollywood with a movie adaptation of the game. The 2006 film, also titled Silent Hill, was not much of a commercial success compared to its game counterpart.

 Sources report that the first film managed to make $100 million on a $50 million budget. This is a bit underwhelming given the success of the game. Six years after the release of the first film, another Silent Hill movie premiered. The movie sequel was the final nail in the coffin as it totally flopped. The last film acted as a closure to the franchise’s attempt to make it big in Hollywood, which makes the news about a new Silent Hill movie more surprising.

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Director teases fans about the franchise’s cinematic future

In an interview with Jeuxvideo, Christophe Gans mentions his goal of making another Silent Hill movie in 2023. He mentions the likeliness of the franchise to Twilight Zone of Fourth Dimension where “anything and everything can happen.” 

Comicbook translates his whole answer:

“The script for a new Silent Hill movie that is totally independent from the two previous movies made and respects the way Silent Hill has evolved. Most of the time, these are stand-alone stories. Silent Hill is a bit like Twilight Zone, the Fourth Dimension, a place where anything and everything can happen.”

Gans says that the new Silent Hill movie would be a different kind of film than its predecessors. 

“I worked on a new Silent Hill which is a Silent Hill of the year 2023 since the film would be released next year, in 2023, and not a Silent Hill as I imagined it in 2006. It is a Silent Hill for today’s audiences while being ultra respectful of the saga. I am aware that Silent Hill is a very great video game franchise and a work of art in the noble sense of the term.” 

As of writing, there is no official news about the new Silent Hill movie. We don’t know its storyline or what kind of horrors the new film will give us. But given that the movie sequel was a massive flop, we’re hesitant to expect something great from this new film. 

Will the new Silent Hill movie give us the chills or the cringe? We’re about to find out next year. 

What do you think about the new Silent Hill movie? Do you think it’s time for the franchise to rest its Hollywood dreams and focus on its gaming roots? Please share with us your thoughts and comment below.

Paul is many things. He's a fan of anime, superheroes, and everything in between. He dedicates his downtime to annoying the heck out of his cats and dog.