Fresnadillo to Direct Amblin Entertainment’s “Haunted”

Juan Carlos Fresnadillo is turning a new leaf…

The 48-year-old Spanish filmmaker is set to direct Amblin Entertainment’s Haunted, a film that is inspired by the 1898 Henry James gothic ghost story Turn of the Screw.

Juan Carlos Fresnadillo

Penned by Chad Hayes and Carey Hayes, the film is considered a passion project for Steven Spielberg, who really wanted to make a horror film.

Fresnadillo’s breakout film was 28 Weeks Later; his Spanish-language directing debut was Intacto, this after he received an Oscar nomination for his short film Linked.

Lately Fresnadillo, a Goya Award winner for Best New Director, has been busy working in television: He directed the pilot Falling Water, which got picked up by USA Network and was done under his overall deal with Universal Cable Productions.

He’s prepping to next direct Prototype, a UCP pilot for a Syfy series that he’s will also executive produce.