Bleecker Street has acquired the North American distribution rights to Walters Media Group’s horror film The Third Parent. The film marks the feature debut of producer David Michaels, who will write and direct with Rob Lowe, Crispin Glover, and Roselyn Sanchez set to star.

Adapted from the viral “creepypasta” series of Internet stories from author Elias Witherow, The Third Parent sees an unsettling figure named Tommy Taffy disguise himself as a human, infiltrate a suburban neighborhood, and impose authoritarian rule over an innocent family during the Fourth of July. The film has yet to be scheduled for release, but will have a nationwide premiere.

Gary Michael Walters (Whiplash, Nightcrawler, Colette) will produce under Walters Media Group. Rob Lowe will also produce for Enfant Terrible, and Jonathan Halperyn and Daniel Kresmery for Hero Squared. Executive producers include Bleecker Street’s own Andrew Karpen and Kent Sanderson.

“Crispin Glover’s Tommy Taffy will be the next great horror villain,” said Karpen and Sanderson in a joint statement. “With Gary’s incredible track record as a producer and David’s strong vision, anchored by Rob Lowe and Roselyn Sanchez’ compelling performances, we believe this will be a singular and terrifying theatrical experience.”

Founded by Andrew Karpen in 2014, Bleecker has more than 75 films under its belt, including the Oscar-nominated Captain Fantastic and Trumbo and films from auteurs like Steven Soderbergh and Debra Granik. Bleecker’s 2025 slate consists of romcom The Wedding Banquet starring Lily Gladstone and Bowen Yang, which sees a theatrical release on April 18 after premiering at Sundance; Naomi Watts and Bill Murray’s The Friend, which opens nationwide April 4; and Riz Ahmed-led thriller Relay that debuts theatrically August 22 after a premiere at TIFF 2024.