‘Amityville: The Awakening’ Trailer: Something’s Not Right

It’s been 37 years since the original Amityville Horror, which weirdly spawned 12 sequels, many of which were direct-to-video releases up until now. A new trailer for Amityville: The Awakening takes us back to the dreaded haunted house once again for the new sequel starring Jennifer Jason Leigh and Bella Thorne. And it looks about as corny as a direct-to-video sequel, but at least it has a good cast?

The first trailer for Amityville: The Awakening dropped in 2014, back when the film was slated to hit theaters in 2015, so this one has been in the can for a while. As for why Dimension decided to release it now…just take a look at the cast: Jennifer Jason Leigh (coming off of her acclaimed role in The Hateful Eight), Bella Thorne, Thomas Mann (Me and Earl and the Dying Girl) and Cameron Monaghan (the not-quite-Joker from Gotham).

Amityville: The Awakening features nods to the first two films (the mythology, the bees, etc.), but it also looks like a mix of Aussie cult horror flick Patrick (comatose dude wreaks supernatural havoc) and contemporary paranormal outings like the Insidious sequels. Basically, this thing is kind of all over the place, and it’s surprising that this one isn’t going direct-to-video like the numerous Amityville sequels before it.

Here’s the official synopsis:

AMITYVILLE: THE AWAKENING, is a revival of the popular franchise and a modern twist on the classic horror film.
In the film, Belle and her family move into a new house, but when strange phenomena begin to occur in the house, Belle begins to suspect her Mother isn’t telling her everything and soon realizes they just moved into the infamous Amityville house.

Words like “revival” and “twist” seem too strong for this sequel, which probably isn’t the revitalizing injection the producers were hoping to give the series. It does have some good things going for it, though, with a solid cast and director Franck Khalfoun, best known for indie horror favorites like P2 and the Maniac remake.

Amityville: The Awakening hits theaters on April 1, and no, it’s not an April Fools joke.