Know what’s really hot in Hollywood right now besides Star Wars and superheroes? Genre storytelling, and nostalgia. Just look at the success Warner Bros. had with It, and the buzz Netflix is enjoying right now thanks to Stranger Things.

To that end, Paramount Players is gathering around the campfire for a feature adaptation of the beloved Nickelodeon show Are You Afraid of the Dark?, hiring red-hot horror scribe Gary Dauberman to pen the script, the Tracking Board has exclusively learned.

Matt Kaplan will produce the movie, and plot details are being kept under wraps.

Paramount Players is a new division at Paramount Pictures that is led by Awesomeness founder Brian Robbins. In a June statement, Paramount chief Jim Gianopulos said that Paramount Players would “focus, in distinctive ways, on contemporary talent and properties for young audiences while drawing upon the vast resources of the Viacom brands.”

Nickelodeon is, of course, one of those Viacom brands, along with MTV, Comedy Central and BET, and Are You Afraid of the Dark? was one of the key shows from the network’s memorable SNICK lineup in the ’90s.

The show revolved around a group of teenagers who referred to themselves as The Midnight Society. Every week, at a secret location in the woods, one members would tell a scary story to the rest of the group, some of which were based on public domain fairy tales, short stories or urban legends.

The original Canadian horror/fantasy-themed anthology series was created by D.J. MacHale and Ned Kandel, and was picked up by Nickelodeon in 1991, though it didn’t debut until SNICK’s launch on Saturday, Aug. 15, 1992. The show ran until April 1996, and a revival series with new writers, directors, writers and cast members was produced by Nickelodeon from 1999 to 2000.

Next up for Dauberman, who wrote Annabelle, Annabelle Creation and the horror blockbuster It, is The Nun, which is a further extension of the Conjuring universe. He’s represented by ICM Partners, Industry Entertainment and attorney Eric Suddleson.

With It, Get Out, Split and Annabelle: Creation among this year’s most successful films, Paramount is betting the horror craze won’t die down anytime soon, as the studio just hired Starry Eyes filmmakers Kevin Kolsch and Dennis Widmyer to direct a remake of Stephen King’s Pet Sematary. I grew up as a huge fan of both that film and Are You Afraid of the Dark? (and R.L. Stine’s Fear Street series, which is in development at 20th Century Fox), so here’s hoping horror stays hot over the next couple years.

Paramount will release Are You Afraid of the Dark? based on the Canadian/Nickelodeon 1990s aired anthology series on Oct. 11, 2019. It scribe Gary Dauberman is writing and will produce with Matt Kaplan. Paramount is producing in conjunction with Nickelodeon Movies.

Bloody Disgusting is hearing exclusively that D.J. Caruso is in talks to direct the feature that IT writer Gary Dauberman previously said will “honor the darker, scarier tone of the show.”

Caruso is an interesting choice as his most recent directing gigs include The Disappointments Room and xXx: Return of Xander Cage, although he also helmed the fantastic teen thriller Disturbia back in 2007.

The show revolved around a group of teenagers who referred to themselves as The Midnight Society. Every week, at a secret location in the woods, one member would tell a scary story to the rest of the group, some of which were based on public domain fairy tales, short stories or urban legends. The new film will be a completely original story told by The Midnight Society.

Paramount is targeting an October 11, 2019, release, so getting a director locked in so they can begin casting is imperative.