David Cronenberg's 1981 classic Scanners is getting a series at HBO Max set to be written by William Bridges (Black Mirror) and directed by Yann Demange (Lovecraft Country).

Known for one of the most memorable scenes in '80s horror, in which a man's head explodes in a rain of gore on a stage before a stunned audience, Scanners has long been a cult favorite with its dose of Cronenberg's sci-fi storytelling, great body horror, and endless gore. The original film pits two groups of “scanners”—people with telekinetic, psychic, and telepathic powers—against each other in a war for good and evil.

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The Hollywood Reporter has learned that HBO plans to create a multi-episode thriller set in Cronenberg's Scanners world with new plot lines and characters. The plot has been described as "a visceral thriller set in the mind-bending world of Cronenberg’s film. It will focus on two women living on the fringes of modern society who are pursued by relentless agents with unimaginable powers and thus must learn to work together to topple a vast conspiracy determined to bring them to heel." Scanners starred Michael Ironside as a scanner battling the sinister ConSec firm, whose goal was to turn fellow scanners into government sanctioned weapons. Two sequels to the original film were released in the early 1990s, Scanners II: The New Order and Scanners III: The Takeover.

Scanners

Scanners has been a fan favorite for over 40 years for both Cronenberg lovers and horror effects aficionados. The famous exploding head scene, which incorporated a mix of gelatin and latex to make happen, has often been used as a key scene to emulate for much of the 80’s horror that followed in the pre-CGI world. When the movie was released in 1981, it was pretty much panned by critics but devoured by audiences, particularly as the rise of VHS players in American homes brought it before new eyes in the following years.

Cronenberg is a master world builder, responsible for films like the 1986 hit revival of The Fly and Videodrome (1983), so a series set amidst a world of telekinetic gifted humans and sinister corporate forces seems like a great way to flesh out new storylines and characters. The onboarding of Bridges and Demange, who seem great at working with sci-fi/horror material, has great potential. Much is still unknown about casting decisions, but the series looks to be a promising blend that will appeal to horror and sci-fi lovers alike.

Scanners (1981) is now available on HBO Max.

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Source: The Hollywood Reporter