The Fear Collection, a new horror-based joint venture between Sony Pictures International, Amazon Prime Video and Alex de la Iglesia’s Pokeepsie Films, has announced its next feature production, “Venus” from Spanish genre legend Jaume Balagueró (“[Rec]” “Mientras duermes”) and starring one of the country’s most exciting young actors, Ester Expósito (“Élite,” “Someone Has to Die”).
Balagueró’s new feature was announced at the genre-specialist Sitges Film Festival, where De la Iglesia was premiering his latest “Veneciafrenia,” the first production undertaken by The Fear Collection. Plot details are scant to nonexistent, but Balagueró will be joined by screenwriter Fernando Navarro (“Veronica”) and production will begin in November to facilitate a 2022 theatrical launch.
“When Álex called me to direct ‘Venus’ I immediately said yes,” said Balagueró in the announcement. “I thought about what would happen if we took the universe of cosmic terror created by Lovecraft and transferred it to today, in a miserable, dirty environment on the outskirts of a modern city, and that is what we have done with ‘Venus’.”
Popular on Variety
“Although personal affinity is essential to embark on an adventure of this magnitude, it is also necessary to have a creative connection and a shared vision in the medium and long term, in addition, of course, to a sustainable financial structure that allows a greater focus on creativity,” said Sony Pictures Iván Losada of the company’s involvement in The Fear Collection. “I want to thank Amazon and Ricardo Carbonero and Manuel Reverte as indispensable strategic figures in the origin of this project. We are backing this brand with great marketing and distribution muscle to achieve notoriety and spark the interest of viewers.”
According to Amazon’s Carbonero: “Our aspiration at Amazon Prime Video is to offer our audience content that is exclusive and relevant and with a high level of originality. The Fear Collection is a strong best for us because to meet these objectives it is essential to have the best talent, and for that we have Álex de la Iglesia in addition to all of Carolina’s production experience. Equally essential is having a strategic partner that helps us to support great talents, and we have that in Sony.”
“The Fear Collection is a dream come true,” added de la Iglesia. “It is something that has always been in our heads, having a production structure that would allow us to make films without the difficulties of starting each project from scratch. Now, thanks to Sony and Amazon, we have that structure. Our intention is to make many, many movies.”
