Hammer Just Bought a Whole Haunted Library — Susan Hill’s Complete Works

The rocking chair moves when no one’s sitting in it. You’ve stopped looking at the nursery window after dark. The bell still rings from the empty room upstairs. And the woman in black is still watching from the marshes.

She just got a whole lot more company.

Turn every lamp on, fiends — the dark is doing business tonight.

Hammer Films has acquired the complete literary works of Dame Susan Hill, the author of The Woman in Black, Variety reported on Monday, October 12, 2026.

Quick Specs

• Acquirer: John Gore Studios, owner of Hammer Films since 2023
• Rights: film and TV; theatre where existing rights allow
• Hill’s role: stays involved in portfolio management and development strategy; will executive produce
• Named candidates: The Man in the Picture, Dolly, The Small Hand, The Mist in the Mirror, Printer’s Devil Court

John Gore called Hill “one of Britain’s most distinctive literary voices,” promising “care, craftsmanship and respect.”

Hill called it “heartening to see their stories continue to find new life,” noting Hammer’s “long and distinguished place in British gothic storytelling.”

Hammer and Hill go way back: the studio’s 1989 TV Woman in Black, then the 2012 Daniel Radcliffe film — Hammer’s biggest US opening ever at $127.7M worldwide.

The candidates read like a haunted inventory — a painting, a doll, a hand, a mirror. A whole Hill of beans, and every bean is haunted.

Full disclosure, up front — this is an acquisition announcement, not a review. No adaptations dated, no casting, nothing to watch yet.

Trivia & Facts

• The Woman in Black’s West End stage version ran 33 years.
• The 2012 film’s $127.7M haul was Hammer’s biggest US opening ever.
• John Gore Studios bought Hammer Films in 2023.

Harper’s Extras

• Hammer Films — the studio’s gothic roots, from our own wiki.
• Dracula (1958) | Plot, Cast & Horror Facts — where the Hammer legend started.
• The Woman in Black (2012) — revisit the Radcliffe chiller before the new wave.

FAQ

• Which books are included? Her complete works — film and TV rights, theatre where existing rights allow.
• Which stories are first? The Man in the Picture, Dolly, The Small Hand, The Mist in the Mirror, Printer’s Devil Court.
• Is Susan Hill involved? Yes — development strategy and executive producer.
• When will we see anything? No dates yet.

Sleep tight — and trust no one.

(News via Variety.)