Orphan prequel Esther in the works from The Boy director
An upcoming Orphan movie prequel has found its father in director William Brent Bell.
EW has confirmed the Devil Inside and The Boy series filmmaker will helm Esther, a planned prequel to Jaume Collet-Serra’s 2009 horror hit starring Hunger Games actress Isabelle Fuhrman as a sinister adult masquerading as a nine-year-old child in an effort to be adopted by a grieving couple (Vera Farmiga, Peter Sarsgaard).
The Hollywood Reporter notes that new film (written by Prey‘s David Coggeshall), follows Fuhrman’s Lena Klammer, who successfully escapes from a Russian psychiatric facility before coming to America by impersonating the titular child: the missing daughter of a rich family. Her plot, however, hits a roadblock as she clashes with a mother who will stop at nothing to protect her family.
A representative for Fuhrman did not immediately respond to EW’s request for clarification on the actress’ involvement with Esther.
Upon the original Orphan‘s release, the Warner Bros. film — which was produced by Leonardo DiCaprio, among others — earned $78 million worldwide on a reported $20 million budget.
Esther is currently being shopped to potential distributors at the European Film Market in Berlin, Germany, with original screenwriter David Leslie Johnson reportedly on board as an executive producer. Production is slated to begin later in 2020, and will be handled by eOne and Dark Castle Entertainment.
Bell’s sequel Brahms: The Boy II hits theaters this Friday, with Katie Holmes taking the reins from Lauren Cohan in the stand-alone sequel’s lead role.
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