Good news, fright fans. We just received word from producer Peter Block that the legendary John Carpenter will soon be directing The Ward for Block's new production company A Bigger Boat. The Ward will be written by Michael and Shawn Rasmussen, and Amber Heard has signed on to star. Block tells us, "We plan to start shooting this spring at an appropriately creepy asylum." Hit the jump for the details of the press release... 

"The Ward is an intense psychological thriller set in a mental institution where a young woman, Kristen (played by Heard) is haunted by a mysterious and deadly ghost.  As danger creeps closer, she comes to realize that this ghost might be darker than she could have imagined. Production is scheduled for a May start.

'The Ward is the kind of script that I've been looking for: a complex, visceral story, full of suspense and scares,' said Carpenter.  'I am especially pleased to be working with Amber because I know she will create a powerful central performance.'

The Ward is being produced by Doug Mankoff, Mike Marcus and Andy Spaulding of Echo Lake Entertainment, which recently wrapped production on The Joneses, co-starring Heard.  Financing and producing alongside Echo Lake will be Peter Block and his recently launched company A Bigger Boat.  'Working with John Carpenter on The Ward is a dream come true; fans everywhere, me included, have been waiting for just this kind of thriller from him.  It's great to be able to tackle it with the Echo Lake gang whose work I've also admired for years,' said Block."