David Lowery, the writer and director behind A Ghost Story, The Green Knight, and Peter Pan and Wendy, is set to direct The Fisherman for Focus Features, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Lowery will co-write the screenplay with Alex Ross Perry, the indie filmmaker known for Listen Up Philip and Her Smell.
The source material is John Langan's 2016 novel of the same name, which won the Bram Stoker Award for Best Novel. The story follows two widowers, Abe and Dan, who bond through fishing trips in upstate New York. When Dan proposes visiting Dutchman's Creek, a location rumored to let visitors glimpse their deceased loved ones, the pair venture beyond a stranger's warnings and encounter Der Fisher. The novel blends cosmic horror with folk horror, a combination that aligns closely with Lowery's interest in grief and the uncanny.
Producing are Michael Bay, Brad Fuller, and Alex Ginno through Platinum Dunes, the banner behind A Quiet Place and The Purge franchises. Also producing are Gary Dauberman and Mia Maniscalco through Coin Operated. Dauberman previously wrote the screenplays for It and the Annabelle series, bringing a track record in literary horror adaptation to the project.
Lowery's films tend to work in quiet registers, finding dread in absence rather than spectacle. The Fisherman's premise, two men seeking their dead wives at a cursed fishing hole, suits that instinct. The Platinum Dunes attachment may indicate a wider commercial release strategy than Lowery's previous work. No release date has been set.
