'Are You Afraid of the Dark?' movie news: Writer promises to stay faithful to series' dark tone
Following the movie adaptation of the 90's classic Nickelodeon program "Legends of the Hidden Temple," comes another big screen adaptation of another program. The "Are You Afraid of the Dark?" movie is happening, and Gary Dauberman, known for penning the screenplay for this year's "It" remake and "Annabelle: Creation," has been tapped to write the script for the upcoming feature.
Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, Dauberman revealed his plans when it comes to the big-screen adaptation. He explained that because the show is about the shared experience of telling scary stories, he hopes that they could celebrate that experience with the movie, all while staying true to the show's dark and scary tone. He also went on to say that he hopes he gets the approval of the Midnight Society, the group that the 90's series is centered on.
For those who are unfamiliar, The Midnight Society is a reference to the group of teenagers in the show. They regularly meet up, as the name of their group suggests, at midnight to tell each other scary stories.
The stories range from haunted houses, haunted games, beings from out of this world, to movies where the characters leap off the screen, and even a secret police force that goes after kids who make prank calls. One such story involved the characters of the movie to come out of the screen to unsuspecting movie theater staff in an episode titled "The Tale of the Midnight Madness."
The original "Are You Afraid of the Dark?" series was on the air for five seasons, with the show's Midnight Society having a sort of stable roster of members. As the episodes progressed, there were members who came and left, but there was not much of a connection between those telling the stories as the essence of the show was more on the stories they told.
The series was later revived in 1999, but unfortunately only lasted two seasons. It was inspired by the likes of "The Twilight Zone" and "Tales From the Crypt" but the stories were often subdued in tone in order to appeal to younger generations. The initial series was around the same time when author R.L. Stine released his iconic "Goosebumps" series of books, also featuring a variety of scary stories for kids. It was also turned into a TV series, which had four seasons.
Other details for the "Are You Afraid of the Dark?" movie have yet to be announced, such as the format of the films. Whether or not it would be more on an anthology with the different members of the Midnight Society telling scary stories, or if it would go down the same route as the 2015 "Goosebumps" movie where the famous stories will come to life to face the group of storytellers.
