For all the movie buffs out there excited about the wave of remakes arriving soon — a live-action version of The Lion King, three new baddies for a Charlie’s Angels revival and a new chapter in The Matrix have all been announced to name a small few — the 1990 psychological thriller Jacob’s Ladder is getting a fresh reboot that takes the original horror story in a new, twisted and all-around sadistic direction.
Directed this time by David M. Rosenthal, the 2019 retelling was actually shot in 2016 and announced even earlier in 2013. The film stars Michael Ealy taking on the lead role as Jacob Singer. However, the plot veers from the original script by introducing Jesse Williams playing the character of his brother Issac, and that’s where things go batshit crazy. While the “war survivor” plot point stays in tact, this version puts both brothers as serving in Afghanistan together and the eerie circumstances that occur when Issac returns home after over a year of everyone believing he died on the battlefield. From ice baths and bloody noses to underground drug dens and ghoul-faced fiends, be prepared to be spooked out and thrilled at the same time. The film also stars Nicole Beharie as Sam, the wife of Ealy’s character, in addition to Karla Souza (How to Get Away With Murder) and Joseph Sikora (Power).