Universal's NEW Classic Monsters Series

[Clive]

If you aren't familiar with Karyn Kusama, know this is good news. Not only did she direct the excellent, underappreciated Jennifer's Body, she also mounted The Invitation, which should be seen without knowing much about it - it's streaming on Netflix.

Very, very exciting.

 

[belloq87]

THE INVITATION is excellent, so I'm a Kusama fan.

I can't say I'm terribly interested in putting Dracula in modern day, though. I think you lose so much atmosphere by doing that.

 

[quinnmac000]

Blumhouse will be continuing the revamp of the Universal Classic Monsters, with Dracula next.

The project isn't housed at Universal yet, and technically, it could be made at another studio because Dracula is in the public domain, but that is highly unlikely given that Blumhouse has a first-look deal with the studio and Universal isn't about to let one of its iconic monsters escape the fold.

 

[AlexanderMBush]

I doubt that Universal would be to neglect the fact that The Invisible Man is a massive success, considering the small budget and critical praise.

Could Blumhouse take it to other studios? Perhaps. But I think Universal may try to get them to stay on--especially as it's low-cost/high-reward.

 

[DK745]

I doubt that Universal would be to neglect the fact that The Invisible Man is a massive success, considering the small budget and critical praise.

Could Blumhouse take it to other studios? Perhaps. But I think Universal may try to get them to stay on--especially as it's low-cost/high-reward.

Well it sounds like Universal has the first chance at it and if they say no then it could go elsewhere. I don't know why Universal would say no though.

 

[RevFreako]

about the only thing that disappoints me is, I was hoping for more of Russell Crowe as Dr. Jekyll. Best part of Cruise's Mummy.

 

[quinnmac000]

Bride of Frankenstein Update: David Koepp Says Film Is Still in the Works

'Bride of Frankenstein,' with a starry cast and big name director, was supposed to be a titan of the Dark Universe. Now, it lives on.

collider.com

 

[rageofthegods]

Reviving this thread to bring excellent news:

Channing Tatum Re-Teams with Phil Lord, Chris Miller for Universal Monster Movie

The feature will be a tongue-in-cheek thriller inspired by the studio's legacy monster movies.

www.hollywoodreporter.com

Please let this be Phantom. I want to see Lord-Miller handle that kind of ham.

And just to bring people up to speed on what the Uni Monster Movies in development are:

Bride of Frankenstein with David Koepp (Jurassic Park) writing and Amy Pascal (The Post, Little Women) producing - possibly. It's supposedly centered on the idea of a female being created for the sole purpose of being a mate, and will center around anxieties surrounding technology (interestingly enough, A24 is doing a similar Bride of Frankenstein movie featuring a very similar take).

Dark Army is being written and directed by Paul Feig, and is described as being a "true Monster Movie" rather than strictly a horror movie, with the idea of monsters as outsiders front and center. Will feature legacy characters from the Universal canon as well as original characters.

Renfield is being handled by Dexter Fletcher (Rocketman) and Skybound Entertainment (Walking Dead). It's described as a more comedic take centered on Renfield's abusive work relationship with his boss Dracula, similar in tone to What We Do In the Shadows. Ryan Ridley (Rick and Morty) is writing the script.

An Untitled Frankenstein Project is being produced by James Wan, and is centered on a group of kids who spy on their neighbor and realize he's building a creature, Rear Window-style. Robbie Thompson (Supernatural, Jericho) is writing the script.

The Invisible Woman comes from Elizabeth Banks (Charlie's Angels, Pitch Perfect 2), who will produce and star, and is described as "Thelma and Louise crossed with American Psycho" (great pitch!)

Monster Mash is a musical project from acclaimed music video director Matt Stawski centered on the Universal Monsters and the classic Monster Mash novelty song. Will Widger is writing the script and Temple Hill (The Maze Runner, First Man) is producing.

Karyn Kusama and writing team Matt Manfredi and Phil Hay (Destroyer, The Invitation) is creating an original take on Dracula with Blumhouse Productions.

Wolfman is going to star Ryan Gosling and be directed by Leigh Whannell, who will also write a treatment. Lauren Schuker Blum and Rebecca Angelo (Orange is the New Black) are writing.

And speaking of Leigh Whannell, a sequel to Invisible Man is currently in discussion.

Little Monsters comes from Josh Cooley (Toy Story 4) with Mandeville producing. It's described as a "love-letter to classic Hollywood...in the tradition of the classic 80s Spielberg films" and is meant to be a more PG-Rated adventure-type fare. In addition, new designs will come from Crash Macreary, who, among many other things, did the designs for Hollywood's Classic Monsters maze in 2018.

And finally, Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson is teaming with Universal to produce a remake of Scorpion King.

 

[belloq87]

The fact that so many of those projects are pitched as comedies/lighter fare kind of concerns me.

Whannell's WOLFMAN and INVISIBLE MAN sequel are definitely of high interest to me, as is Kusama's DRACULA (because her THE INVITATION is an excellent, extremely tense horror-thriller)... but the rest? I kind of wish Universal was committed to taking the Monsters more seriously.

ABBOTT & COSTELLO MEET FRANKENSTEIN is one of the great classic comedies, but Universal only went there after 17 years of playing the characters straight (with a couple exceptions here and there). They earned the silliness because they'd mined all the dramatic potential by that point. Today, though, Universal seems eager to go straight for goofy as the baseline mode, with the few serious films being the outliers.

 

[PerceptiveCoot]

I'm getting flashbacks to Dark Universe where all these moviea were announced and very few got made

 

[rageofthegods]

The fact that so many of those projects are pitched as comedies/lighter fare kind of concerns me.

Whannell's WOLFMAN and INVISIBLE MAN sequel are definitely of high interest to me, as is Kusama's DRACULA (because her THE INVITATION is an excellent, extremely tense horror-thriller)... but the rest? I kind of wish Universal was committed to taking the Monsters more seriously.

ABBOTT & COSTELLO MEET FRANKENSTEIN is one of the great classic comedies, but Universal only went there after 17 years of playing the characters straight (with a couple exceptions here and there). They earned the silliness because they'd mined all the dramatic potential by that point. Today, though, Universal seems eager to go straight for goofy as the baseline mode, with the few serious films being the outliers.

Well let's be fair, I doubt Bride of Frankenstein or Wan's Frankenstein movie are gonna skimp on the horror. And I don't think more light-hearted versions removes the possibility of darker versions down the line.

I'm getting flashbacks to Dark Universe where all these moviea were announced and very few got made

It's possible, but Invisible Man was a big hit and they're not doing the connected-Universe thing anymore so there's less pressure on the movies being load-bearing pillars where one flop drags down the rest. I think this project can weather a few flops.

 

[RevFreako]

Well let's be fair, I doubt Bride of Frankenstein or Wan's Frankenstein movie are gonna skimp on the horror. And I don't think more light-hearted versions removes the possibility of darker versions down the line.



It's possible, but Invisible Man was a big hit and they're not doing the connected-Universe thing anymore so there's less pressure on the movies being load-bearing pillars where one flop drags down the rest. I think this project can weather a few flops.

And I would suggest they're gonna follow the Blumhouse model of keeping costs down, which will mitigate the odds of flopping.

 

[JungleSkip]

They’re also not going with a MCU knockoff like they were with Dark Universe

 

[belloq87]

Well let's be fair, I doubt Bride of Frankenstein or Wan's Frankenstein movie are gonna skimp on the horror. And I don't think more light-hearted versions removes the possibility of darker versions down the line.

We'll see. I love these characters, so I'll see any of these movies they make. I just hope they don't turn a bunch of them into jokes right off the bat.

 

[quinnmac000]

Universal And James Wan Tap ‘Overlord’ Director Julius Avery To Direct New ‘Van Helsing’ Movie

Universal Pictures is developing a new horror movie set in the world of Van Helsing with 'Overlord's Julius Avery directing and James Wan producing.

deadline.com

Also confirmed....Karyn Kusama and writing team Matt Manfredi and Phil Hay (Destroyer, The Invitation) is creating an original take on Dracula with Blumhouse Productions is officially with Universal.

 

[shiekra38]

Let's not call it "Dark Universe" or anything until we got a few films under our belt

 

[PerceptiveCoot]

Let's not call it "Dark Universe" or anything until we got a few films under our belt

It's called the Dark Universe 'cause you can't see it

 

[HHNManics]

 

[belloq87]

I wonder what that means for Karyn Kusama's DRACULA adaptation that was also being developed at Universal.

 

[rageofthegods]

I wonder what that means for Karyn Kusama's DRACULA adaptation that was also being developed at Universal.

According to Variety: "Separately, Blumhouse Productions is also developing a new version of Dracula, with director Karyn Kusama (“Destroyer”) and writers Matt Manfredi and Phil Hay. A representative for Universal says Zhao’s new take on Dracula does not affect the Kusama project, which remains in development."