Sam Raimi and Jordan Peele Team Up for PORTRAIT OF GOD Starring Chase Infiniti

A viral horror short about staring into the face of God is making the jump to the big screen, and it has assembled a strong reative team to make it happen.

Lionsgate has acquired Portrait of God, filmmaker Dylan Clark’s feature adaptation of his popular horror short, with Golden Globe and Emmy nominee Chase Infiniti set to star. The religious horror film will also bring Sam Raimi and Jordan Peele together as producers for the first time.

Clark is directing the movie from a screenplay he co-wrote with Joe Russo (The Inheritance). The feature will expand the mythology introduced in Clark’s original Portrait of God, which he uploaded to YouTube three years ago. The short took off online and has since racked up more than 8.6 million views.

The premise is simple, but seriously creepy. The story revolves around a mysterious painting that looks completely blank to some people, while others can make out the face of God hiding within its darkness.

When a woman studies the painting for herself, she eventually discovers that something inside the blackness appears to be looking back at her.

That’s a great horror concept to build a feature around, especially with Raimi and Peele involved. Both filmmakers have very different approaches to the genre, which makes their first producing collaboration interesting.

Infiniti is coming off her breakout work in One Battle After Another and Hulu’s The Testaments. Clark is also becoming a major name to watch in horror. In addition to Portrait of God, he has been tapped to direct the upcoming 2027 reboot of The Blair Witch Project.

Lionsgate Motion Picture Group chair Adam Fogelson said: “We’re delighted to deepen our creative partnership with Dylan Clark, whose remarkable talent and distinctive perspective make him one of the most exciting emerging voices in horror.

“With Sam and Jordan, two of the genre’s most influential producers, the extraordinary Chase Infiniti starring, and Dylan at the helm, this is an exceptional creative team. We believe they have all the ingredients for a film that is haunting, thought-provoking, and scary as hell.”

Clark also shared his excitement about continuing his relationship with Lionsgate and bringing Infiniti aboard: “With Blair Witch, I’m experiencing firsthand the trust Lionsgate places in its filmmakers, and I couldn’t be happier that Portrait of God has found a home there as well.

“I’m also thrilled to welcome Chase Infiniti to our team. She blew me away in One Battle After Another and is one of the most exciting young actors working today.“

Raimi and Rob Tapert will produce Portrait of God through Ghost House, while Peele and Win Rosenfeld will produce through Monkeypaw Productions. Russo is also producing in addition to co-writing the screenplay.

There’s a lot of potential in Portrait of God. The original short already has an unsettling hook built around faith, perception, and the possibility that looking for God might result in something looking back.