In Hollywood right now, no trend is hotter than the shared universe model. Ever since The Avengers became an incredible global phenomenon, studios have been trying to create their own versions of the Marvel Studios system and create their own united franchises. It’s become particularly popular in the comic book movie world, but has also expanded beyond that genre, with projects like King Arthur, Robin Hood and Universal Monsters giving the new method a spin. Now it seems that another horse has entered this race, as the horror-heavy Blumhouse Productions has been confirmed to be in the midst of creating its very own shared universe.
With the new movie Unfriended screening at SXSW this weekend, I had the chance to sit down one-on-one with Executive Producer/Blumhouse founder Jason Blum, and it was during our conversation that he noted that his company is in the midst of creating links between some of its biggest franchises. Asked if the shared universe model was something that he was potentially interested in doing, Blum told me,
Be like Marvel, you mean? Yeah! I want to do that. We’ve been putting Easter Eggs in movies in different things. There’s some in Insidious 3. There’s some in Sinister 2. So yeah, we’ve been doing that. I would like to do more of that.
Both the first two Insidious movies and director Scott Derrickson’s 2012 film Sinister rank as some of the most successful franchises that Blumhouse has been able to produce so far, and it appears that their individual upcoming sequels - Insidious Chapter 3 coming out on June 5th and Sinister 2 arriving August 21st – will be at the very least making some strides to show that they may exist in a shared world. Of course, it’s worth mentioning that the studio is still in the process of putting together a bigger picture. As Blum explained,
We’re not close to an Avengers, but I do like the idea of having the worlds collide in the different franchises we work on. That’s a really cool idea… I want to continue to do that.
Insidious Chapter 3 and Sinister 2 could definitely be a start, but those are far from the only franchises that Blumhouse Productions has under its control. The company became famous on the back of the Paranormal Activity franchise, though it’s key to note those movies were made at Paramount Pictures, while both Insidious 3 and Sinister 2 are set up at Focus Features. Given that The Purge is set up at Universal Pictures – Focus Features’ parent company – that remains a possibility, though it would be interesting to see how that continuity could possibly fit with the other films.
Do you like the idea of a Blumhouse Productions shared horror universe being build up with Insidious and Sinister and potentially more movies? Hit the comments with your thoughts!
