Wolf Creek creator dons goggles for VR horror Graveyard Smash

Wolf Creek creator Greg McLean plans to bring real terror to the world of virtual reality with Graveyard Smash. According to Deadline, he's working alongside screenwriter Gus Krieger on a film that will draw from an entire monster mash of influences.

The site posted the official synopsis as such: "Desperate to find her missing sister, a young woman and her three best friends find themselves trapped inside a virtual-reality game where every level forces its players to survive a different genre of a horror movie. When they learn that dying in the game means dying in real life, the friends are forced to hack, slash and battle their way to the toxic mastermind behind it all. "

McLean's Wolf Creek debuted back in 2005 and introduced the world to Australian madman Mick Taylor (John Jarratt) who terrorized a trio of backpackers. A sequel came out in 2013 followed by a TV series that ran for two seasons from 2016-2017. McLean also helmed the killer crocodile movie Rogue, the killer office thriller The Belko Experiment and the Daniel Radcliffe survival film Jungle.

“As a lifelong horror fan, Graveyard Smash is our love letter to the genre that’s given us so much joy, fun and pure terror,” McLean told Deadline. “As a director, I’m so excited to be working with Gus on bringing this story to life, one that allows audiences to playfully and scarily experience a narrative that combines gaming, technology, nostalgia and horror fans deep connection as a community. Graveyard Smash is a horror roller coaster, and we can’t wait to take audiences around the world on the thrilling and unforgettable ride with us.”

Krieger has written features like The Binding and My Name Is Myeisha, but also has producing credits on Would You Rather and the under-seen slasher Fender Bender, which he also has a part in. "From the first moment director Greg McLean came to me with the idea for Graveyard Smash, I was absolutely hooked," he said to Deadline. "As a lifelong gamer and horror fan, I could think of no better or more imaginative way to dive headlong into all aspects of our favorite genre. Drafting this twisty, spooky and very contemporary adventure has been an absolute pleasure, and there’s no one better than McLean to bring this story to terrifying life.”

The movie sounds like it will mix in a little Cabin In The Woods with some Escape Room while also hearkening back to the first wave of VR horror that hit in the 1990s. Films like Lawnmower Man and its post-apocalyptic sequel dealt with the subject as did Brainscan or even Arcade. Virtual reality sort of faded away once everyone realized that the technology was not quite able to recreate reality both on and off the big screen. However, the tech has come back in a huge way and stands poised for the horror world to integrate it back into the genre.

Graveyard Smash is expected to start shooting this year.