Screen Gems is developing a feature film based on the Slender Man horror meme and has hired Sylvain White to direct it.

Slender Man began life on a horror website called Something Awful, which was conducting a photo contest – a photoshopped figure with unnaturally long arms and a featureless face. A narrative implied the man was involved in causing the disappearance of children and other horrifying acts. The photos and idea went viral, taking on a life of its own as other people added to the pictures and text, growing the myth. Short films, cosplay, and video games followed. There’s even a documentary titled “Beware the Slenderman” which discusses a real-life incident in which two girls attempted to murder one of their friends in an attempt to appease the fictional Slender Man. The documentary is set to premiere on HBO later this month.

Sylvain White is a name we haven’t written about on this blog in a couple of years when he directed a French thriller titled “The Mark of the Angels – Miserere” which was released in 2013 (it’s available in the USA on home video). Since then, he’s done a lot of directing for TV including episodes of “Hawaii Five-0,” “Major Crimes,” “Empire,” “Sleepy Hollow” and more. So “Slender Man” will mark his return to feature film directing, although the horror project isn’t set for release until 2018.




Mythology Entertainment will produce the film version of the internet-grown intellectual property.

Madhouse Entertainment and It Is No Dream Entertainment also are involved with the deal, as the two are partners with Mythology in the venture. Mythology acquired the rights to “Slender Man” for all platforms including motion picture, television, video games, publishing and more.

Screen Gems will co-produce and distribute the feature, targeting a spring 2017 production start.

The film’s script was written by David Birke, the writer behind the horror flick “13 Sins” and Paul Verhoeven’s “Elle.”

For those who aren’t at all familiar with Sylvain White’s work, you’ve probably seen his films: “The Losers” and “Stomp the Yard” to name two.

Deadline was first to report the news of Sylvain White’s attachment today.