When you think of contemporary horror cinema, it’s very easy to encounter a film produced by Blumhouse of Jason Blum or by the Atomic Monster of James Wan: specialists in low-cost, high-return genre cinema, among Saw, Insidious, M3GAN, Happy Death Day or Mama, the two creatives had already joined forces in a corporate merger two years ago, but now they have mutually renamed the creature. Evidently the apprenticeship period can be considered finished: the new reality is running at full speed.
Blumhouse Atomic is the horror production house of Jason Blum and James Wan
The producer Jason Blum and the director/producer James Wan wanted to keep the spirit of their two labels in the name given to their now commonly run production company: from Blumhouse and Atomic Monster comes Blumhouse Atomic. It is effectively a mini-major in an indie context: the two specialize in low-cost cinema with high grosses. They have given life in twenty years to nightmares of various kinds and shades, from sadistic gore to black humor: let us recall at least Saw, Insidious, The Conjuring, The Nun, Mama, Paranormal Activity, The Purge, Sinister, Get Out, Happy Death Day, M3GAN. The past year has confirmed their instincts, with the hits Obsession and Backrooms. It is estimated that in their production history the two have secured worldwide box office of around $2,500,000,000, having spent for the films that generated them a mere $330,000,000 cumulatively! If we bear in mind that a single Hollywood blockbuster can have that budget, there’s little to add.
To mark the launch, James Wan reaffirmed their intentions to continue seeking young filmmakers in the indie world, as was the case for him in 2004 with the first Saw. Blum claimed the successes and stressed how their coalition has enabled a symbolic step: the very return of the Saw saga to Wan’s management, for the next chapter.
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