Troubled Rumors Swirl Around Tobe Hooper's DJINN As First Images Surface

Enjoy these images from Tobe Hooper's Djinn because if a report out of Italy is correct they may be all you ever see of the latest from the director of The Texas Chain Saw Massacre and Poltergeist.

Reportedly completed in October, Djinn was widely expected to premiere at the Dubai International Film Festival in December. But it didn't. Why? According to reports someone within the royal family in the United Arab Emirates saw the film and - objecting to its portrayal of Arab culture - has paid producer Mohammed Al Mubarak of backing studio Imagenation - a UAE based company - to bury the film. Reports are that Imagenation are now refusing to even listen to bids from would-be distributors.

What could be setting them off? All we really know about the picture is from the following brief synopsis: An Emirati couple return home from a trip and discover that their new apartment has been built on a site that is home to some malevolent beings.

How firm this news is is very much open to debate but there is no question that after announcing the project with as much fanfare as possible, things have been very quiet. Sales agent Fortissimo Films doesn't even have a single image from the film on their website - an odd occurrence for a finished feature.