Leslie Odom Jr. is taking a story from Rolling Stone about Sammy Davis Jr.’s ties to the Church of Satan into a new horror movie he also plans to star in …
One of the more fascinating tales of Hollywood in recent years came in the 2024 feature “Dance with the Devil” from Rolling Stone magazine that told the story about Sammy Davis Jr. and his ties to the Church of Satan — in particular a friendship with church founder “The Black Pope” Anton Szandor LaVey.
Now actor Leslie Odom Jr. — the multi-time Oscar and Emmy nominee — is adapting that story into a new horror film that he also plans to star in.
The original story detailed how Davis starred in a 1972 sitcom called “Poor Devil” where the beloved singer and actor portrayed a lowly demon trying to prove his worth to Lucifer after 1,400 years of failure when it came to procuring a soul for the devil. The project also starred Christopher Lee to play Lucifer, “The Odd Couple” star Jack Klugman as the accountant willing to sell his soul to the devil and “Batman” star Adam West as his boss.
Diane Hegarty saw the show on television and she was stunned to hear a mention of the Church of Satan — the church she founded alongside her partner known as “The Black Pope” Anton Szandor LaVey. Seeing Davis portray a demon talking so openly about the Church of Satan in a network comedy felt like the perfect segue to promote their work so LaVey and Hegarty reached out to the Rat Pack member offering him a chance to become an honorary warlock.
Not long after, Davis actually replied and ended up forging a two-decade long friendship with LaVey.
Now Odom is taking that story and crafting it into a horror movie that’s also being produced by Rolling Stone films.
Of course, Odom is no stranger to horror after starring in the Blumhouse feature “The Exorcism: Believer” in addition to his numerous other film and stage credits. Now he’s adapting the story about Davis’ ties to the Church of Satan into a new film that promises to be entertaining!
H/T: Deadline
