Well, with so many directors dipping their toes in the water of television, not everything is going to make it, and unfortunately for Mark Romanek‘s “Locke & Key,” the pilot episode of the mooted gothic horror/drama never even got to air. Those lucky enough to be in San Diego in July for Comic-Con were treated to a screening of the pilot, but if you weren’t around to catch, this trailer will likely be the only peek you’ll ever get at what Romanek cooked up.
Based on the graphic novels, and with a script from Josh Friedman (”War Of The Worlds,” “The Black Dahlia”), the story kicks off when the Locke family moves into the mansion the Keyhouse, after the father of the family passes on. It turns out the doors of the massive house each lead to a different place in this world (or another). Miranda Otto led the cast and this trailer — which has apparently been online for a while but flying under the radar — certainly points to a project that was still in its formative stages. Some of the set design and FX belies a production was under some budget constraints as a pilot usually is and the acting is patchy in places. The tenor of the film seems to be pretty well established though also reminiscent of spots for “Don’t Be Afraid Of The Dark.”
“This leaked L/K trailer was made by Fox for advertisers months ago (obviously before they decided not to pick us up),” Friedman tweeted. “Nobody should make anything of its presence on the net. I don’t know who put it out there. But it is something Fox had shown me long ago.”
So, in the end, it’s a glimpse at what could have been. For now, Romanek is headed in a new direction, taking on a live-action, re-imagined take on “Cinderella.” [via ComingSoon]