[_____V_____]

"The Howling" is coming back.

Indie producers Joel Kastelberg and Moonstone Entertainment's Etchie Stroh are re-launching the werewolf franchise as "The Howling: Reborn."

Former studio marketing exec Joe Nimziki, who worked at New Line, MGM and Sony, will make his feature directorial debut from his own script.

Pic's due to start shooting in February for a Halloween release, with plot details under wraps.

The original "Howling," directed by Joe Dante from a script by John Sayles, was released in 1981 and spawned six sequels. Dee Wallace-Stone starred as a news anchor stalked by a serial killer who turns out to be a werewolf.

Steve Lane and Bob Pringle, who served as exec producers on the original, will also exec produce "The Howling: Reborn."

Kastelberg's credits include "Bodies, Rest and Motion," "Mr. Jealousy," "Sleep With Me" and "Kicking and Screaming" while Stroh's include "Cookie's Fortune," "Afterglow," "Dancing at the Blue Iguana" and "Stranger Than Fiction."