FRIGHT FLICKS TO DO BATTLE ON HALLOWEEN

Hollywood is getting set for a scary Halloween encounter when Paramount releases Paranormal Activity 2 on October 22, the same day that Lionsgate launches Saw VII 3D. Daily Variety said that Paramount didn’t even sign a director (Tod “Kip” Williams) until last week and that the movie has only just begun casting. (The original Paranormal Activity was shot in just over a week and reportedly cost just $15,000. It earned nearly $200 million at the worldwide box office.) Paramount has no plans to release Paranormal Activity 2 in 3D. Indeed, one of the attractions of the original film was that it looked as if it had been shot by an amateur with rudimentary camera equipment. The Saw sequel, by contrast, will be filmed in 3D, a factor, Variety said, that “could give it an edge.”