‘PHANTASM V’ Is Finished. Coscarelli Not in Director’s Chair?

I remember hearing about rumblings of Phantasm V in the past few years. One rumor is that Coscarelli was shooting it pieces at a time. Today, Phans got a teaser that exclusively premiered on Ain’t It Cool News and other news from Shock Till You Drop. Read below for the summary and why Coscarelli might not be in the director’s chair.

Here’s the poster:

Here’s the info (courtesy of Phantasm Archives):

• The “Lady in Lavender” will be in this entry
• To reiterate, this project has been filming little by little since 2008.
• The original working title for several years was “Reggie’s Tales.”
• The original cast members put in appearances along with some Don Coscarelli regulars.
• It was partly filmed in Crestline, CA at Reggie Bannister’s own home!
• Many of the familiar series elements are back… the ‘Cuda and the sphere especially. Oh, yes… there will be blood!
• Ryan Turek from Shock Till You Drop added exclusive info into his article:

They did not write this over at the site, but Phantasm Archives was able to confirm to me that none other than David Hartman wrote and directed Phantasm V: Ravager. Hartman is an artist who has done a ton of work for various studios and genre personalities like Rob Zombie. You can see his work here.

Ryan also states that Coscarelli is not directing the fifth entry but is supervising. Given his latest directorial contribution in John Dies at the End, I have no clue why he is not in the director’s chair at all. The guy adapted a book that many thought couldn’t be adapted and the film is one of the most interesting and original films of the genre in years. While I’m a bit disappointed that Coscarelli isn’t directing, I know that Phantasm is his baby and wouldn’t make the decision lightly.

Keep in mind that Phantasm celebrates its 35th anniversary this year and the crew (Don Coscarelli, Angus Scrimm, Reggie Bannister, Michael Baldwin, Kathy Lester & Bill Thornbury) will be attending a reunion at Flashback Weekend in Chicago this August.