It's been nearly 50 years since The Amityville Horror was published, and in the time since we've seen ... well, let's call it "more than our fair share" of adaptations, remakes, reboots, sequels, sidequels, and - quite recently - a detour into outer space. Indeed, so ubiquitous is the Amityville brand that FANGORIA was compelled to add a "Best Amityville" category at this year's Chainsaw Awards. That damned house certainly gets around.
Well, it ain't through with us yet: this April, MGM+ will release a brand-new, four-part documentary series called Amityville: An Origin Story, which will (you guessed it!) take us inside the story that inspired this seemingly endless franchise of films, offering up all manner of eyewitness accounts, archival footage, and entirely new interviews.
Here's what the press release has to say...
AMITYVILLE: AN ORIGIN STORY tells the story behind the world’s most infamous haunted house tale: the Amityville murders. The project is the first elevated look at every aspect of this wildly layered story about the heinous murder of a family of six that became eclipsed by paranormal controversy.
The 1979 blockbuster film, The Amityville Horror, inspired by the book of the same title by Jay Anson spawned an ever-expanding universe of movies, books, supernatural theories, and horror superfans. But the mass murder behind the hauntings—and its alleged ties to organized crime—left a long trail of questions that have never been fully explored.
Rooted in the dark cultural undercurrents of the 1970s, the series features firsthand accounts from witnesses, family members, and former investigators appearing on-camera for the first time. Exclusive archival footage, newly unearthed images, and stunning original photography are woven together into the most compelling and comprehensive telling of the Amityville story yet, taking viewers on a heart-pounding roller coaster ride through the mythology, factual record, and devastating human toll of this notorious meta-narrative.
And that's not all, MGM+ subscribers! Amityville: An Origin Story (directed and produced by Jack Riccobono, by the way) will hit MGM+ the same day the streamer drops the second season of FROM, its Harold Perrineau-starring series about a bunch of people trapped in a small town that really, really does not want them to leave. It's all part of MGM+'s "Halfway to Halloween" event, the announcement of which provides us with a nice reminder that we're almost halfway to Halloween.
Nothing further to report at this time, but we're definitely interested to see what Amityville: An Origin Story has in store for us. The promise of new interviews and fresh archival material is certainly a plus, and we're curious to see what this doc series adds to the overall mythology of that oft-visited-on-film location. Stay tuned for more on Amityville: An Origin Story as further updates become available. In the meantime, mark your calendars for April 23rd.
