Paranormal Activity 4I sure hope you didn't pay for the full seat to hear this breaking entertainment news, because friends, you're only going to need the edge. In what is perhaps the most shocking development in movie sequel history, there will be -- are you ready for this??? -- a FOURTH Paranormal Activity.

*Shrieks, passes out in puddle of overexcited urine*

Yes indeed, there's yet another Paranormal Activity on the way, and if you were thinking that the franchise directors have surely maxed out their ability to mine the increasingly familiar found-footage horror genre by now, you'd be wrong. DEAD wrong, as the just-released trailer seems to imply.

The somewhat vague promise for Paranormal Activity 4 is that it'll answer the questions surrounding sisters Katie, Kristi, and the mysterious demonic force that has haunted them since childhood. At least, that's what I assume the film's tagline means: "All the activity has led to this."

Let's recap the series to date (I'm about to get into spoiler territory, so avert your gaze if you're hoping to preserve your virginal viewing sanctity of the films): Paranormal Activity 1 was about a young couple, Katie and Micah, as they were haunted by a demon that Katie believed had been following all her life. Paranormal Activity 2 focused on Katie's sister Kristi and her family as they dealt with the (same?) demon. Paranormal Activity 3 was a flashback prequel, telling the story of young Katie and Kristi as the demon entered their lives for the first time.

So what's Paranormal Activity 4 all about? Take a look at the trailer:

Frankly, I'm not entirely sure what's going on here plotwise, but it seems we can at least confirm there will be more shaky footage, scary lighting, and lots of creepy glimpses of Things That Are Generally Effed Up.

In other words, it's business as usual for the franchise -- which is good news for the studio, since these movies are very good business indeed. They're super cheap to make, they rarely have to pay big budget movie stars (although this one will reportedly include Glee's Dianna Agron), they almost always do well on DVD, and their return on investment is INSANE. In fact, the second and third Paranormal movies combined to earn $383 million at the global box office.

As for whether or not the series remains compelling at this point, I can't say I'm particularly excited about it. I thought the first one was fun, had no desire to see the second (spooky babies in cribs? Nope nope nope nope nope), and honestly didn't even realize there was a third one. Really, I just assume that the longer a one-trick-pony franchise pumps out sequels, the worse they get. I mean, a seventh Saw movie? In 3D, even?

Still, I'm positive Paranormal Activity 4 will do great at the box office -- and it'll continue to spawn out future installments or spinoffs. While the found footage trend isn't always successful (for example, the abysmally-received Apollo 18), this is one series that seems to have figured out the winning formula.

What do you think about the Paranormal Activity 4 trailer? Will you be seeing it when it's released in October?


Image via Paramount