Radcliffe is going to be an absolute expert on story arcs that see a hero, gaining powers from a dark force, who tries using them for good. While his newest role might be another trip down that familiar aisle, it probably won’t run the risk of reminding to many people of his Potter history.

AICN has let it slip that Radcliffe has been tapped to star in Alexandre Aja’s latest film:

HORNS is about a young man who wakes up one morning with devil horns protruding from his forehead and the ability to influence people to do bad things.  He uses his powers to try and figure out who raped and murdered his girlfriend. 

Aja is one of the most exciting horror filmmakers working today, with the ability to push passed the boundaries of what people expect, even in the over saturated horror market. Based on the synopsis of Horns, it sounds as if Aja has found another avenue for him push the envelope.

The casting of Radcliffe as the lead in this new project speaks volumes for what the former Mr. Potter wants his career to be. By sticking with horror and genre films he is embracing an aspect of what made him famous in the first place.

Plus a few years doing high-end horror has to be a welcome change of pace after a decade of Harry Potter.

Two new movies had robust openings, while a third couldn’t find any traction at the box office this weekend.

Ben Affleck’s latest movie  The Town was warmly received, exceeding most industry expectations and winning the weekend box office with over $23.8 million. The film received great reviews, and audiences gave the film a solid B+ grade on Cinemascore.

The last time Affleck directed a movie (Gone Baby Gone) it did not earn that much during its entire theatrical run.  He is definitely a rising directing talent.

Emma Stone proved that she can open a movie, as Easy A earned $18.2 million. The film had a reported budget of only $8 million, so from here on out its earnings are pure profit. Easy A also got high marks from audiences, scoring an A- on Cinemascore.

Despite having an intriguing premise, Devil failed to connect with audiences, although it did manage to make $12.5 million. Devil is the first movie in a trilogy “from the mind of M. Night Shyamalan” called Night Chronicles.  The second movie is underway, and  Daniel Stamm (The Last Exorcism) has been hired to direct.

While M. Night Shyamalan is getting bashed for his work on The Last Airbender, he’s actually staying pretty close to his roots with another project called The Night Chronicles, a series of films that he helped get started, and a few that he even created, while also letting other filmmakers have a crack at it.

The first in the lineup is Devil, which is about a group of strangers that get stuck in an elevator and one of them “is not what they seem.” Sure, the film is a little bit like a Tales From the Crypt episode, but that’s not a problem since there hasn’t really been a good horror anthology in a long time.

Devil is filled with relative unknowns, with a few C-listers. Geoffrey Arend may be the most recognizable face, and you may know him best as Christina Hendrick’s husband. Also along for the ride are Chris Messina, Caroline Dhavernas, and Bokeem Woodbine.

Directed by the team that brought you Quarantine, you can expect to see plenty of technology-based scares in the film, and the trailer does it some justice.

Check it out after the jump. Catch M. Night Shyamalan’s Devil in theaters on September 17th.