Following his departure from the superhero-focused studio, controversial former DC Films head Walter Hamada finds a new home in an exclusive deal with Paramount Pictures in which he will oversee their horror. The move takes him away from comic book industry, of which he became an infamous figure following the allegations levied against Joss Whedon during Justice League's production, of which Ray Fisher claimed he undermined the investigation into. Hamada has experience producing horror as, before overseeing DC for four years, oversaw such New Line horror hits The Conjuring and It.
The Hollywood Reporter has brought word that Walter Hamada has inked an exclusive deal to oversee Paramount Pictures’ horror team. Hamada is expected to release several mid-budget horror films for theaters and streaming each year for Paramount Pictures, with president and CEO Brian Robbins shared his excitement about working with him, saying that Hamada's the ideal partner and visionary to lead their mainstream horror films to success. Hamada himself expressed his eagerness to work with Paramount Pictures and within the horror genre again in the statement below:
“I am thrilled to collaborate with Paramount Pictures with the singular goal of creating exceptional movies in the horror genre. Over the course of my career, nothing has been more gratifying than discovering emerging, first-time filmmakers and writers and unleashing their brilliance in a studio setting. Thank you to Brian and the entire team at Paramount Pictures for this tremendous opportunity, I can’t wait to get started.”
What Hamada's New Position Means For Paramount Horror
When Hamada joined DC in 2018, a time that saw the departure of filmmaker and DCU key player Zack Snyder, he opted to steer away from the MCU's concept of a shared universe, setting DC films like Joker and The Batman in different realities. Should he work with Paramount similarly, fresh and innovative stories within the horror genre are to be expected, be they interconnected, or otherwise. Hamada's DC projects were each considered to be films that stood separately, not just from each other but, from superhero films in general, as Joker won two Oscars for Best Actor and Best Score, while both Jame Gunn's The Suicide Squad and The Batman earned "Certified Fresh" ratings on Rotten Tomatoes, a rarity when looking back at the franchise's earlier entries.
Now onboard with Paramount, the executive has a chance to find new voices working within the horror genre and bring them to light, providing the right platform for emerging artists, as he's expressed in wanting to do. With Paramount's latest success, Smile, and Hamada's experience working on both The Conjuring and It franchises, the studio should expect fresh franchises from new voices. Here, Hamada has the chance to introduce to the horror genre a new maestro in the same vein as horror master James Wan, as well as Andy Muschietti and David F. Sandberg, who made their way into DC following their work with Hamada on It and Lights Out.
As seen with his infamous tenure at DC Films, Walter Hamada beats to the sound of his own drum, looking at trends within genres and going the other way. It's possible he'll do the same with the horror genre as he sets up camp in Paramount Pictures, though whether this proves to be a benefit for the studio or a curse is yet to be seen. Come January 2023, a new wave of horror might arise and sweep the landscape of the genre with new names and good scare, beginning with Scream 6 in March.
Source: THR