HellHouse LLCmay be about to close down, but the team behindthe underrated horror franchiseis ready to send it out with a bang. After four installments sent directly to video-on-demand or streaming services, directorStephen Cognettiis taking his latest and final film,Hell House LLC: Lineage, to theaters with help from Iconic Events Releasing. The film will arrive on the big screen in August, though an exact date has yet to be announced. Afterwards, it’s set to premiere exclusively on the franchise’s longtime streaming homeShudderin October,just in time for Halloween.
Handled by Terror Films Releasing,Lineageis billed as the final chapter of thenearly decade-long found-footage series, which is largely based around the fictional titular haunted house attraction and the people who once worked there. The first three films all explore the history of the attraction and its former existence as the Abaddon Hotel, while the fourth film, 2023’sHell House LLC Origins: The Carmichael Manor, visits the cursed home of two notorious killers to unravel the mystery behind their suspected crimes. For the last installment, the story picks up with journalist Vanessa Shepard, who died in the first film and was later resurrected in the third,Lake of Fire, as she remains in the town of Abaddon and is haunted by nightmares of her brush with death and the demonic. When everyone around her begins mysteriously dying, she finds a chilling connection linking her to the Abaddon Hotel, the Carmichael Manor, and a string of bizarre murders occurring throughout the decades, sending her on one final journey for answers and a resolution to the horror.
Stringing together all four previous horror flicks means thatLineagewill also have a lot of returning characters and cast, particularly fromCarmichael Manor.Elizabeth Vermilyea, who is also set to star in Cognetti’s next horror flick,825 Forest Road, is back at the top of the call sheet as Vanessa, withSearra Sawkareprising her role as documentarian Alicia Cavalini.Cayla Berejikian, Victoria Andrunik, andGideon Bergerare all also back as the Carmichael siblings, Catherine, Margaret, and Patrick, respectively, withBridget Rose PerrottaandDestiny Leilani Brownreturning as victims Margot and Rebecca, andMarlene WilliamsandRobert Savakinusplaying the Carmichael parents Elizabeth and Arthur once again.Hell HouseLLCnewcomer and other upcoming825 Forest RoadactorMike Suttonis also on board as Father David.
‘Hell House LLC: Lineage’ Will Be a Big Departure From the Franchise Formula
Since the horror series first debuted at theTelluride Horror Showin 2015,Hell House LLChas been hailed forits found-footage documentary style. Both the first film andCarmichael Manorin particular have earned high praise from critics and audiences alike, with the most recent installment garnering an 88% Tomatometer score onRotten Tomatoes. However,Lineagewill take things in a different direction for the first time, ditching found footage altogether to better accommodate the climactic finale. In an official statement about the theatrical release, Cognetti assured that there was a good reason for abandoning the typical formula and expressed how the change would make it all the better on the big screen:
“This is by far the biggestHell Houseof the series, so experiencing it in a theater is definitely the best way to consume the final chapter. For the story, scope and scares I wanted to write inLineage, found footage was going to be too restrictive to make the film that I wanted to make. I set out to make aHell Housemovie like you’ve never seen and I promise you won’t be disappointed in the change of format."
Hell House LLC: Legacycloses out the long-running horror series in theaters in August and will stream on Shudder in late October. In the meantime, check out the teaser above and stay tuned here at Collider for more on the final installment of Cognetti’s franchise.
