A24 has built its reputation on stylish, daring cinema, but the real secret to their biggest wins isn’t the strangest experiments or the loudest horror films. Their most consistent hits are the ones tied to true stories. That pattern explains why the studio is reportedly circling The Texas Chainsaw Massacre franchise.
Think about the last few years. Warfare pulled from the real memories of Navy SEALs in Iraq and became one of A24’s best reviewed films with an A– CinemaScore, the highest grade the company has ever received from mainstream audiences. Sing Sing brought real inmates into its cast and earned near perfect scores from critics. The Zone of Interest, inspired by Rudolf Höss and Auschwitz, collected Oscars and a Grand Prix at Cannes. Even Zola, which started life as a viral Twitter thread, became a cultural flashpoint because the story was too outrageous not to be true. These weren’t accidents. They were proof that truth, or even the illusion of truth, is A24’s most powerful weapon.
That’s where Leatherface comes in. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre has always sold itself as if it were ripped straight from the headlines. The film’s closest inspiration, Ed Gein, was a killer who turned human remains into furniture and masks. Tobe Hooper exaggerated most of the story for shock value, but the 1974 marketing pushed audiences to believe it was “based on a true story.” It worked so well that half a century later, the tagline still defines the franchise.
The problem is that every studio that touched the property since then struggled to keep the chainsaw roaring. Cannon Films, New Line, Platinum Dunes, Lionsgate, Legendary, Netflix — all tried to reboot it, and all failed to capture the magic of the original. The results swung between camp, glossy remakes, and box office disappointments. The franchise has been stuck in constant revival mode.
Now reports say A24 is at the front of a bidding war, and the reaction has been immediate. Some fans are excited at the idea of a prestige version of Chainsaw, pointing to the studio’s track record with Hereditary and The Witch. Others are skeptical, arguing that Chainsaw should be raw, sweaty, and grimy, not polished into a slow-burn art film. That tension reflects the bigger story here: A24 is no longer just the indie outsider. They are evolving into a company that buys major franchises, sells lifestyle merch, and positions itself as a cultural brand as much as a film studio.
If the deal closes, it will be ironic. The most notorious grindhouse horror, banned in countries and whispered about in the 70s as something too real to handle, would now sit under the same roof as Moonlight and Everything Everywhere All at Once. Leatherface himself may never have been real, but the “true story” hook has always been part of his legend. And A24 has already shown that when it comes to critical acclaim, nothing works better for them than selling truth.
About the Author
