Women in Horror: Marianne Maddalena

There are plenty of awesome ladies who’ve transformed the horror film genre and don’t get enough recognition, like Debra Hill who co-wrote Halloween! Today, we want to give a shout out to Marianne Maddalena who produced the film Scream – a movie that that def inspired us when making Beverly Hills Ghost due to its flawless combination of horror and humor.  

Maddalena attended Michigan State University in the 1960s and then began to study and work in France and Italy. In 1986, she scored a gig as Wes Craven’s personal secretary and they became fast friends and creative partners. Maddalena served as Craven’s assistant on the set of The Serpent and the Rainbow (tbh this thriller is a little too scary even for us!), which proved to be difficult for everyone in the cast and crew due to the political turmoil in Haiti where they were shooting. Apparently, the local government even told the crew their safety “wasn’t guaranteed” during filming. Gulp.

While this shoot may have scared even the bravest people away from a film career, Maddalena was a badass and told Craven that she wanted to be a producer after The Serpent and the Rainbow was released. The pair teamed up on multiple film and television projects and eventually worked on Scream together. Aside from being an amazing producer, Maddalena also discovered the iconic mask that the film’s killer wore. Super cool, right? The duo then went on to create the company Craven/Maddalena Films and this #girlboss babe still produces films to this day.

After you’ve finished bingeing the Scream franchise, you def need to watch our latest film, Beverly Hills Ghost. It’s available on iTunes, Google Play, and Amazon Prime and it’s the perf Halloween season flick!