Dead Souls (2012 film)

Dead Souls is a 2012 horror film directed by Colin Theys, adapted from Michael Laimo’s 2007 novel of the same name. The story centers on Johnny Petrie, who learns on his 18th birthday that he was adopted and has inherited his birth family’s farm in Maine. Upon arriving, he finds the house abandoned and occupied by a squatter named Emma. He soon discovers that his entire birth family was killed in the house, and the property holds dangerous secrets that threaten his life.

The cast includes Jesse James as Johnny Petrie, Magda Apanowicz as Emma, Bill Moseley as Sheriff Depford, Geraldine Hughes as Mary Petrie, Noah Fleiss as Mack, Jaiden Kaine as Andrew Judson, J.H. Torrance Downes as Benjamin Conroy, Elizabeth Irene as Faith Conroy, Kyle Donnery as Daniel Conroy, and Bridget Megan Clark as Elizabeth Conroy.

The novel was optioned for film, with John Doolan adapting it into a screenplay. Colin Theys was confirmed as director, and Jesse James, Bill Moseley, and Magda Apanowicz were announced as stars. Filming took place in Canterbury, Connecticut in April 2012. To prepare for his role, Moseley read both the script and Laimo’s novel, which he enjoyed. Brian Spears handled special effects, stating that the ghosts were his main priority and “the reason I took the job.”

The film premiered on Chiller on October 12, 2012, and was released on home video through Scream Factory on June 25, 2013. Critical reception was mostly negative, with common criticism aimed at the characters and script. HorrorNews.net panned it, calling it “one of the more inept ghost stories to come along in quite a spell, compliments of Chiller TV. At least SyFy knows how to polish a turd.” Praise was generally reserved for Moseley’s performance.