Salem’s Lot Adaptation Found Its Rob Lowe Replacement
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For months now, there has been major speculation about who would lead New Line’s adaptation of Stephen King’s best-selling novel, Salem’s Lot. The last this acclaimed novel was adapted for the screens, the charismatic Rob Lowe was the lead character. While names of many actors have cropped up as serious contenders for the role, it has now been finally confirmed that Lewis Pullman, who was last seen in the comedy-drama Pink Skies Ahead, will be playing the role of Ben Mears in what is the third adaptation of Salem’s Lot.
Pullman has been chosen as the Rob Lowe replacement, with some other cast members been officially announced. The Hollywood Reporter has shared that this cinematic adaptation of Salem’s Lot is currently scheduled to begin production from September in Boston. The script of the film has been penned by Gary Dauberman, who will also be directing the project. Dauberman has experience in bringing Stephen King’s characters and story to the big screen as he has also written the script for King’s It adaptation in the past.
This new adaptation of Salem’s Lot will see Pullman’s character, Ben Mears, arrive in Jerusalem’s Lot, a place where he grew up, in hopes of finding some inspiration to start his next book. But upon arriving in his hometown, he discovers that people are not the same as they were and an evil vampire is preying upon them. To fight him, he brings together a team that has the same mission as he does- to defeat the vampire and free their hometown. As mentioned above, this will not be the first time that Salem’s Lot has been adapted as the last time we saw Ben Mears on the screen, it was Rob Lowe tearing his hometown apart in his hunt for vampires.
While Lewis Pullman, son of the renowned actor Bill Pullman, has given impressive performances in The Ballad of Lefty Brown, Pink Skies Ahead, The Strangers: Prey At Night, his role as Ben Mears in Salem’s Lot will be his first leading role in a major project and will hopefully be a game-changer for his career just like it was for Rob Lowe. Lowe played the iconic character in the 2004 TNT miniseries adaptation of Salem’s Lot, taking after David Soul who appeared as Ben Mears in the first adaptation of the novel in 1979. Lowe came across the role at a low point in his career when he had left the acclaimed tv series The West Wing, had starred in a few series that were soon canceled while the movies he starred in- View from the Top and Perfect Strangers- flopped. Salem’s Lot was an instant success and the highest-rated cable program with the best ratings on TNT at the time.
Previously, it was reported by The Illuminerdi that Jake Gyllenhaal had been chosen to take up after Rob Lowe and play the lead character of Ben Mears in the Salem’s Lot adaptation. But apparently either that never happened or the actor shot down the offer. The new project is produced by Atomic Monster’s James Wan and Michael Clear along with Vertigo’s Roy Lee as well as Mark Wolper. Dauberman, Michael Bederman, Atomic Monster’s Judson Scott, and Vertigo’s Andrew Childs are on board as executive producers.
