Divide/Conquer Strikes First-Look Deal With Blumhouse–Atomic Monster; Doomtown Set as First Project

A new survival-horror era begins as Divide/Conquer teams with Blumhouse–Atomic Monster, launching their partnership with Chris Thomas Devlin’s Doomtown.

A major power move just hit the genre world. Per Deadline, Divide/Conquer — the indie-driven production company led by Adam Hendricks and Greg Gilreath — has officially signed a first-look deal with the newly merged Blumhouse–Atomic Monster. And the first project out of the gate? A high-concept survival horror film titled Doomtown, written by Cobweb and Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2022) scribe Chris Thomas Devlin.

For long-time followers of genre filmmaking, this partnership feels almost inevitable. Hendricks and Gilreath first connected with Jason Blum over a decade ago during the Sundance Creative Producing Lab, and that mentor relationship has clearly evolved into something far more expansive. According to Blum, the deal is designed to support “fresh voices” and cement a collaborative space specifically built to champion bold, high-risk genre storytelling — the exact heartbeat of both companies.

While the Doomtown logline is being kept locked away (for now), Deadline reports that James Wan reacted strongly to Devlin’s script when it crossed his desk at Blumhouse–Atomic Monster, with early rumors suggesting he may be eyeing the director’s chair. Wan’s team has denied confirmation, but the energy around the project feels unmistakably charged. Wan will produce alongside Hendricks and Gilreath, with Michael Clear, Ingrid Bisu, and Judson Scott executive producing.

Devlin’s involvement alone signals big ambition — he’s one of the rising screenwriters who blends folklore, nihilism, and emotional brutality into mainstream horror with deceptive ease. If Cobweb was his twisted fairy tale and TCM his bat-out-of-hell bloodbath, Doomtown is already shaping up to be the kind of survival nightmare both studios can build a franchise from.

The deal between Divide/Conquer and Blumhouse–Atomic Monster goes far beyond this one feature, though. It includes a slate of cost-efficient, high-concept genre films developed through Divide/Conquer, while also allowing the company to contribute producing services on selected Blumhouse–Atomic Monster titles. It’s a two-way pipeline built for scale — and for identifying the next wave of genre disruptors.

Divide/Conquer’s track record backs that ambition. Since 2013, they’ve delivered more than 30 features including M3GAN, Freaky, Cam, Black Phone 2, Totally Killer, Lucky, The Voyeurs, and the upcoming Faces of Death reimagining for Legendary. Their collaborators span every corner of the industry, from Spooky Pictures to Focus Features to Amazon MGM.

Upcoming joint ventures include Anything But Ghosts, the next film from Obsession filmmaker Curry Barker, starring Barker himself alongside Cooper Tomlinson. Blumhouse and Divide/Conquer will co-produce with Spooky Pictures, and early chatter already has this one pinned as a 2026 must-watch.

With nearly $9 billion in worldwide box office between them — and a shared mission to keep genre cinema loud, weird, and culturally dominant — Blumhouse–Atomic Monster and Divide/Conquer entering an official partnership is one of the biggest business stories in horror this year. And if Doomtown is the tone-setter? Expect a sharp escalation in ambitious, filmmaker-driven horror across the board.

HMU will be watching closely as this one develops. And you better believe Doomtown just jumped to the top of our “projects to obsess over” list.