'King' of Micro-Budget Movies, Whose Latest Won the Box Office, Sets Next Project

Less is more, as they say.

On a budget of just $3 million, a supernatural horror film known as Terrifier 3 became a commercial success back in the fall of 2024, winning the box office its opening weekend and ultimately raking in $90 million globally.

Directed by the so-called “micro-budget king” of cinema, Damien Leone, the first two Terrifiermovies were also hits, and a fourth is currently in the works. After that, the acclaimed filmmaker, 44, is moving to the Hollywood studio system for his next original horror project.

Leone has closed a deal to write, direct and produce Tortures of the Damned at Lionsgate, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Plot details are unknown, but it’s reportedly different in tone from Terrifier and will yield a higher budget.

“We’re incredibly proud and excited to be partnering with Damien Leone on his first original film after the beloved Terrifier series. I join the huge contingency of horror fans — and Damien fans — inside Lionsgate who have been following his work and cheering him on,” said Erin Westerman, president of Lionsgate Motion Picture Group, per THR. “Damien is a true genre auteur with a singular vision, and we’re thrilled to help bring this bold new project to the screen while continuing to build on the incredible connection he has with fans around the world.”

Horror icon Sam Raimi will produce through his Ghost House production company. He was last in theaters as a director with Send Help and is already in the Lionsgate business — having been tapped to direct a Magic remake for the studio, THR also noted on Friday, May 29.

After Terrifier 2 made an astounding sum at the box office, the film’s antagonist Art the Clown became a viral Halloween costume icon. Leone was a one-man show for the project, serving as writer, director, co-producer, editor and sound designer on that movie, as well as working on the VFX.