Sam Raimi and Jordan Peele Team Up for the Supernatural Horror Film PORTRAIT OF GOD
When two of horror’s most influential voices connect on a project, the genre world collectively leans in, and when those voices belong to Sam Raimi and Jordan Peele, you can bet the collaboration is going to spark excitement.
The two filmmakers are joining forces for the first time, stepping in to produce a feature-length adaptation of Dylan Clark’s viral short Portrait of God, a project that’s been stirring curiosity among horror fans.
Deadline shared the announcement, revealing that the feature is “a spec from emerging filmmaker Dylan Clark that expands on the world of his viral horror short of the same name.”
Clark co-wrote the screenplay with Joe Russo, who is specifically noted as not that Joe Russo, which is a distinction worth making given the name overlap in Hollywood.
Clark’s original Portrait of God short has been quietly building an online following since debuting in August 2022, amassing 8.6 million YouTube views. It’s a tight seven minutes, but it wastes no time establishing its unsettling premise.
The plot is simple and chilling, described as “A religious girl prepares a presentation about a painting titled Portrait of God. What she sees challenges her beliefs.” It will be interesting to see what Raimi and Peele, each known for their own brand of stylish and unnerving horror, have envisioned for this project.
Details on the feature film’s expanded story are being “kept under wraps,” according to the report, but the short plants plenty of narrative seeds. At its core is a haunted painting with a presence that feels anything but divine.
As the girl studies it for her class presentation, the imagery seems to stir something inside her, hinting that the artwork may hold a dangerous influence or even manifest something darker into reality.
The short also opens with a Biblical warning that invites questions about faith, fear, and the unknown. In a feature-length format, there’s room to explore what else this mysterious painting can do and how its power affects the world beyond one student’s school project.
With Raimi’s knack for kinetic supernatural chaos and Peele’s sharp approach to social and psychological horror, their involvement adds immediate credibility and creative energy to the film. Both filmmakers have track records of elevating emerging storytellers, and their collaboration suggests confidence in Clark’s vision and the eerie universe he’s building.
There’s a lot of potential in expanding Portrait of God into a full narrative, and watching these three filmmakers shape it together should be fascinating.