Chloe Grace Moretz surprised many a moviegoer a few weeks back when she expressed a desire to re-evaluate her upcoming slate, abruptly pulling the plug on Universal’s live-action rendition of The Little Mermaid and effectively cancelling all projects. But an actor in crisis this is not; Moretz, who first broke onto the Hollywood scene at the age of seven, is simply becoming more selective moving forward, which is a refreshingly pragmatic move from a 19-year-old.
“I pulled the plug on all my movies because I want to reassess who I am and find myself within my roles again. I’m realizing that I can slow down,” she told THR at the time. Slowing down, not stopping altogether, because Moretz has found room on that overhauled slate for Suspiria, the horror remake in the works from director Luca Guadagnino and Amazon Studios.
A modern redo that has been gestating for years now, David Gordon Green was one name that was attached to Suspiria early on, but Variety confirms that Guadagnino is presiding over an entirely new cast and crew, recruiting Moretz to star opposite Tilda Swinton (Doctor Strange) and Dakota Johnson (Fifty Shades Darker). There is one familiar face in there for the Italian director, given screenwriter David Kajganich (A Bigger Splash) is on board to pen the remake of Dario Argento’s 1977 Giallo classic.
Casting details are being kept hush-hush for this one, though fans of the cult original will know all too well that Argento’s spooky tale chronicles the story of a young ballet dancer who enrols in what appears to be a prestigious European dance academy. The truth, however, is much more grisly – supernatural, even.
Suspiria is being prepped to enter production later this month.