Arrow in the Head got an interview with Fessenden and when they asked what his reasons were he replied:

“The Orphanage was two years of waiting. Working on the script with Guillermo was a very exciting experience, but then I got into a casting miasma and that’s where the thing is; I think they’re gonna do it another way, actually. So I think I’m out of it. Hopefully they’ll still use my script, but I’m not sure I’m directing it anymore. That’s Hollywood for ya.”

In regards to his next directorial gig, he stated:

“I have like three movies that I wanna do that are, ironically, at this level. Just because that project (The Orphanage) got my foot in the door with studios and managers, agents, all good people working hard – but the fact is I don’t trust whether or not it’ll work. You know, after you get bitten once, you’re just a little more wary.”

This news may be unsettling for Del Toro and crew, but on my side of the fence I think that on the list of upcoming Del Toro projects, this was pretty far down. So if the film has more problems or gets pushed back, I think we’ll all live… and if we won’t, we can always watch the Spanish version, which really has no need to be remade.

Each installment was directed by the biggest horror directors working in feature films today, including John Landis, Darren Lynn Bousman, and Ronny Yu. The episodes went on hiatus during the 2008 Summer Olympics with plans to return after, but no further episodes were aired. Now the plan is to air them online with episodes continuing to be added each week.

Currently, there are already three episodes online with behind the scenes clips as well.

The first is Eater, directed by Stuart Gordon (Re-Animator). This installment stars Samantha Moss (Mad Men) as a rookie cop who must spend her first night in the precinct watching over a serial killer, coined “The Eater”. When her fellow cops start acting bizarre, she quickly learns that no one is who they seem. See below for videos (new for FEARnet) that go behind the scenes with Gordon and discuss the creation of “The Eater” character.

Fear Itself: Eater – Behind the Director

Fear Itself: Eater – Behind the Characters

The second is Spooked, directed by Brad Anderson (The Machinist). Eric Roberts plays an ex-cop who’s thrown off the force for brutality. Now he’s a private eye on a stakeout of a haunted house, where some restless spirits are set on revenge.

The third full episode available is Skin and Bones from director Larry Fessenden (The Last Winter, Wendigo). After being lost in the woods for days, a rancher returns home to his family. But somehow, he isn’t the same. And now, his family is in trouble.

If you didn’t already deduce it from the title, yes, Stake Land is about vampires. Nothing more has been revealed about the plot yet, but Fessenden promises that the new movie will “do for bloodsuckers what Mulberry did for zombies—reinvent them in a gritty urban setting.”

Many of Mulberry Street’s cast and crew will be reuniting for Stake Land, including Nick Damici, who will star and co-write the project with director Jim Mickle.  Lensing begins this November in New York.

No word if Fessenden will also play a part in Stake Land yet.  As if the man isn’t taking on this and multiple projects with Dark Sky Films already, the actor-producer hinted that he is talking to Hollywood big shots about making a major studio debut as director.

In a Press Release Glass Eye Pix reports their partnership will begin with a Fall project from JT Petty (The Burrowers) titled, There’s No Place Like Home, a psychological horror, followed in the next season by a project titled Hypothermia from writer-director James Felix McKenney known for his work in Automatons and Satan Hates You. The ice-cold creature feature will commence shooting this coming winter. Future projects will feature work form Ti West and Larry Fessenden, the dates, still to be announced.

Both companies commented that each sees “eye to eye on what these are going to be like” and that the companies “compliment each other well [in their] likeminded goals for the types of films [they’ll] make.” “We’ve got great talent creating original material; a little bit pulpy, a little bit high-brow,” expressed Fessenden. “Can’t wait to get started.”

Headed by Larry Fessenden who brought us The Last Winter, Wendigo, Habit, and NBC’s Fear Itself, and combined with Dark Sky Films’ continuous impressive acquisitions, this partnership is every cause for excitement!