Lyrical Media and James Tynion IV Team Up to Develop Exciting New Horror Films ‘Exquisite Corpses’ and ‘Room Service’
Lyrical Media and James Tynion IV Collaborate on New Horror Films
Lyrical Media is partnering with acclaimed writer James Tynion IV’s company, Tiny Onion, to develop two new horror films. The projects will adapt Tynion’s bestselling comic series Exquisite Corpses and his earlier work, Room Service.
Tynion, a five-time Eisner Award winner known for his creations such as Something is Killing the Children and The Nice House on the Lake, founded Tiny Onion in 2023 with initial investment from Lyrical Media. This collaboration marks a significant milestone, establishing Lyrical as a key producer across various mediums.
Exquisite Corpses centers around a deadly Halloween game involving America’s wealthiest families unleashing 12 dangerous killers onto an unsuspecting town. To date, the comic series, co-created with artist Michael Walsh and published by Image Comics, has sold more than 500,000 copies, making it the highest-selling original IP launch in the comic market this year. Alongside the comic, a companion trading card game titled Exquisite Corpses: The Game is set for release later this summer, with the franchise envisioned to expand into live-action films, animation, and video games.
Tynion will produce Exquisite Corpses for Tiny Onion, collaborating with Alexander Black and Arlen Konopaki from Lyrical Media, while Michael Walsh and Jon Rosenberg from Lyrical will serve as executive producers.
Additionally, Room Service, initially a Kickstarter-funded short film co-created with artist Elsa Charretier and director PK Colinet, features a sinister hotel service that allows clients to fulfill their ideal murder scenarios. Tynion will co-write the feature film adaptation with Colinet.
These films join an expanding slate of projects for Tynion and Tiny Onion. In October, it was revealed that Blumhouse Productions acquired the rights to adapt Tynion’s Something is Killing the Children into both a film and animated series. More recently, Tiny Onion announced plans for animation adaptations of Tynion’s work, including W0rldtr33 and The Woods, alongside the original series Tipsy Dragon.
“I wanted to find likeminded partners to build incredible worlds with when I started Tiny Onion,” Tynion stated. “Lyrical has been there every step of the way, and I could not be more thrilled to embark on the next leg of our journey together. These projects were built with love and care with my incredible co-creators, and I’m excited to bring that energy to the big screen.”
Lyrical Media CEO Alexander Black praised Tynion’s contributions to modern horror, emphasizing that the company aims to support visionary creators in their bold endeavors. “These two films embody creator-driven storytelling that can grow into the next great horror brand,” he remarked.
Lyrical Media is currently finishing up projects including Adam Wingard’s Onslaught and Michael Sarnoski’s The Death of Robin Hood, which stars Hugh Jackman, Jodie Comer, and Bill Skarsgård. They are also developing various other projects, including adaptations of Emily Henry’s bestselling romantic comedy Funny Story and Brynne Weaver’s novel Butcher & Blackbird.
Established in 2021, Lyrical Media has recently expanded its creative output with the launch of Lyrical Games, a game publishing division focused on supporting independent creators, and Lyrical Animation, following the acquisition of Line Mileage, a prominent animated content production company.
Tynion is represented by Jason Richman at UTA, Zac Frognowski and Jared Ceizler at Brillstein, and Caitlin DiMotta at Troygould.
