Del Toro and Miramax not "Afraid of the Dark"

By Gregg Goldstein

NEW YORK (Hollywood Reporter) - "Hellboy 2" director Guillermo del Toro and Miramax will produce a remake of the horror-thriller TV movie "Don't Be Afraid of the Dark."

Comic book artist-writer Troy Nixey will make his feature directorial debut with the adaptation of ABC's 1973 chiller, which gained a cult following through syndication and home video release. (It is known as "Nightmare" in Europe.)

Del Toro is adapting Nigel McKeand's teleplay with Matthew Robbins, his writing partner on the 1997 horror film "Mimic."

"Dark" centers on a young girl, sent to live with her father and his new girlfriend, who discovers sinister creatures that live underneath the stairs.

The film is in its early stages; research and development of the monsters hasn't begun yet, and other producers might come aboard.

Nixey has attained his own cult status for illustrating "Batman" and "Matrix" comics as well as writing and illustrating Dark Horse Comics' "Trout," which is in development at indie producer Phoenix Pictures.

Reuters/Hollywood Reporter