New Line Cinema has won the rights to remake The Spiral (L’estranea), Paolo Strippoli’s horror-thriller and Italy’s entry for the international feature Oscar, after a competitive bid, Deadline reported on Thursday 12 November. The deal also gives New Line the Italian-language original in the US, Canada, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam. New Line plans a limited US cinema release before the end of the year, in time for awards season. No price was disclosed.
The report probably names the buyer that Le Pacte, the Paris-based seller, left anonymous a day earlier. On Wednesday Le Pacte announced a North American deal that included a commitment to a US theatrical release and could be extended to further territories. New Line’s package matches on every point, but neither company has yet confirmed that it is the same deal.
Key facts
- Buyer: New Line Cinema, now part of Paramount after its takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery
- Rights: an English-language remake, plus the Italian original in the US, Canada and seven Asian markets
- Release: a limited US cinema run of the original before the end of 2026
- Seller: Le Pacte, which also releases the film in France
- Italy: €3.49m ($3.92m) from 480,748 admissions by 10 November, according to Cinetel; outside the daily top 10 on 11 November
The deal
According to Deadline, New Line acquired the right to develop a feature-length English-language film based on the original. The report did not say who would write, direct or produce the remake, or whether Strippoli would be involved. Le Pacte brokered the sale.
New Line is a Warner Bros. label, which Deadline describes as now owned by Paramount. Paramount’s takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery closed on 6 October, and the combined company has since told shareholders that it will run both studios under one film leadership team.
The other territory sales stand. Our report on Wednesday listed 16 buyers outside North America, from Vertigo Releasing in the UK and Ireland to California Filmes in Latin America and Pancinema in South Korea. None of the seven Asian markets now reported for New Line was on that list.
The film
Jasmine Trinca plays a mother whose wish to protect her family draws her into a Faustian pact with a mysterious woman, the Stranger, played by Valeria Bruni Tedeschi. Romana Maggiora Vergano and Adriano Giannini co-star. Strippoli wrote the script with Salvatore De Chirico. Marina Marzotto and Mattia Oddone produced for Propaganda Italia with Rai Cinema, with Kazak Productions in France, Tarantula in Belgium and Dinamo Film in Italy as co-producers.
It is the 33-year-old director’s fourth feature, after A Classic Horror Story (2021), co-directed with Roberto De Feo, Flowing (2022) and The Holy Boy (2025). The Spiral premiered in competition at Venice in September and was first runner-up for the Midnight Madness People’s Choice Award in Toronto. At Sitges, Trinca won best actress and the film took the Silver Méliès; Chicago gave it the Silver Hugo for visual effects.
How it has played in Italy
01 Distribution opened the film in Italy on 8 October (Deadline gives 4 October). By 10 November it had taken €3,493,406 from 480,748 admissions, according to Cinetel’s official figures, or $3.92m at the European Central Bank’s rate for that day. That sits just below Deadline’s “around $4m” and above the $3.8m Le Pacte quoted on Wednesday.
The run is now tailing off. Speaking at the Italian consulate in New York on Thursday, Strippoli said the film was in its sixth week and “still in the top ten” in Italy, ANSA reported. It was ninth on 10 November, with €16,220. On Wednesday 11 November it dropped out of Cinetel’s daily top 10, where the 10th title took €16,004.
What is not known
The price, the remake’s producers and its timetable were not reported. Neither company has announced a US release date for the original or the number of cinemas.
Our reading
Selling the remake right and the US release of the original to the same studio, in one package, gives the film two routes to American audiences. For sellers of European genre films, it shows that a studio will compete for the remake right as a separate asset, and that it can be sold alongside the original rather than in place of it. For Le Pacte, the remake keeps the title earning long after the Oscar race is over.
The awards case is narrower. A US release gives The Spiral a platform for its campaign with Academy voters, and that matters most if it opens before the 15-film shortlist is announced on 15 December. Other European entries have found US distributors this month, among them Norway’s Growth of the Soil and Denmark’s Woman Unknown. The next markers are a release date and a statement from either company.
Sources
- Deadline, New Line wins remake rights to Italy’s Oscar entry The Spiral (12 November 2026)
- The Hollywood Reporter, Italy’s Oscar entry The Spiral sells wide for Le Pacte (11 November 2026)
- Cinetel, Italian box office: daily chart and totals to 11 November 2026
- Le Pacte, The Spiral film page and international press kit
- ANSA, L’Estranea di Strippoli sbarca in Usa, pioggia di accordi worldwide (12 November 2026)
- ANICA, L’estranea designated to represent Italy in the international feature category of the 99th Academy Awards (23 September 2026)
- European Central Bank, euro reference rates (10 November 2026, USD 1.1214)