Universal Pictures has been desperate to turn their iconic Universal Monsters characters into a cinematic universe. However, their first attempt to launch the Dark Universe with Tom Cruise‘s “The Mummy,” turned into a disaster when the Alex Kurtzman-director hybrid project doomed that incarnation along with several related projects in the hopper like “Bride of Frankenstein” and the Johnny Depp version of “Invisible Man.”
They finally struck gold outside the idea of an “interconnected Monsterverse” with Leigh Whannell‘s “Invisible Man” spearheaded by the horror gurus at Blumhouse Pictures. “Invisible Man” led to a strong outing for Universal Pictures’ second attempt to bring classic monsters to modern audiences, taking more of a careful indie angle on making the remake rather than adding as much CGI or action as humanly possible in two hours.
READ MORE: Leigh Whannell To Direct Ryan Gosling In ‘Wolfman’ Reboot; Blumhouse To Produce
Whannell was later announced to help develop a new “Wolfman” movie that had Canadian actor Ryan Gosling attached to star in the remake, and there is finally a concrete update. The basics of the werewolf mythology are that once the full moon arises, an uncontrollable beast immerges, and people end up dying, who can only be killed with silver bullets.
Deadline has reported that director Derek Cianfrance will reunite with Gosling after previously working together on dramas “Blue Valentine” and “A Place Beyond The Pines.” Cianfrance is taking over for Leigh Whannell, who reportedly exited over scheduling issues.
It’s undoubtedly an exciting pick, but Blumhouse Pictures is known for hiring different filmmakers; a good example is having director David Gordon Green tackling “Halloween” and “Excorcist” trilogies for them.
The last significant incarnation of “The Wolfman” was the Benicio Del Toro pic from 2010 that mixed CGI with practical makeup from the iconic Rick Baker and was directed by Joe Johnston.
Other horror projects in various development stages include “Van Helsing,” a new genre hybrid “Dracula” movie from Oscar-winner Chloe Zhao, “Creature From The Black Lagoon,” and Chris McKay‘s “Renfield.” There had been indications Universal might reevaluate to “Bride of Frankenstein” at some point.