Michael Bay's lowerbudget label Platinum Dunes is to "reconceptualise" cult horrorclassic The Texas Chainsaw Massacreas its first production to be financed by Ted Field and Scott Kroopf'sRadar Pictures and sold internationally by Good Machine International (GMI).

The film will startproduction in the spring with Bay and Michael Fleis of Next Entertainmentproducing, and Field and Next Entertainment's Jeff Allard executiveproducing.

Platinum Dunes was formed inNovember by Bay and Andrew Form and Brad Fuller to produce lower budgetcommercial films; it quickly struck a first-look deal with Radar which financesits films through a partnership with GMI and output deals in place with foreigndistributors TMG/Concorde in Germany, Lauren Film in Spain and Sandew MetronomeInternational in Scandinavia.

The original TexasChainsaw Massacre was a sensationwhen it was released in 1974. Directed by Tobe Hooper, the film was about fivetwentysomethings touring rural Texas who fall foul of a monstrous cannibal clanand are one by one slaughtered by the chainsaw-wielding Leatherface. It spawnedthree sequels including, famously, The Return Of The Chainsaw Massacre (aka Texas Chainsaw Massacre 4) in 1994 which starred both Renee Zellwegger andMatthew McConaughey before either achieved stardom.

The film follows Radar'sown first production They, also ahorror movie, which was sold to Dimension Films in the US. Directed by RobertHarmon, it stars Laura Regan, Marc Blucas and Dagmara Dominiczyk, who cancurrently can be seen in The Count Of Monte Cristo.

Next Entertainment, run byTV reality producer Mike Fleiss, is responsible for a number of hit reality TVseries including Who Wants To Marry A Multi-Millionaire and Millon Dollar Mysteries.

The deal was negotiated byCAA on behalf of both Platinum Dunes and Next Entertainment. Platinum Dunes wasalso represented by Robert Offer of Bloom, Hergott, Diemer & Cook LLP whileNext Entertainment was also represented in the deal by Stewart Brookman ofHansen, Jacobson, Teller, Hoverman, Newman, Warren & Sloane, LLP. RadarPictures was represented by David Boyle, executive vice president, business andlegal affairs. GMl was represented by the company's president, DavidLinde, and Sue Bodine of Epstein, Levinsohn, Bodine, Hurwitz & Weinstein.