Editorials
6 Modern Versions of the Classic Universal Monsters Worth Watching
Few franchises can boast the same level of impact on popular culture as the Universal Monsters. From popularizing the idea of a shared cinematic universe to introducing several generations to classic horror literature, we’re still feeling the effects of these early horror blockbusters nearly a century later. That’s why it makes sense that so many filmmakers have attempted to leave their own mark on these iconic stories about monster-hunting heroes and misunderstood creatures.
One of the most interesting trends among these frequent narrative re-imaginings has to be the one where filmmakers attempt to update vintage frights to the modern day. And in honor of storytellers proving that a good monster can still be scary in any time period, we’ve decided to come up with a list highlighting six modernized versions of the Universal Monsters!
For the purposes of this list, we’ll be defining a “Universal Monster” as any movie monster obviously inspired by Universal’s classic run of iconic creature features. We’ll also be stretching the definition of “modern,” as some of these films were released over two decades ago. That being said, don’t forget to comment below with your own updated favorites if there’s a particularly memorable example that you also think deserves some love.
With that out of the way, onto the list…
6. Hollow Man (2000)
Despite not even sharing a name with H.G. Wells’ classic novella, Paul Verhoeven’s Hollow Man remains the most faithful adaptation of The Invisible Man since the original 1933 film. The plot may have been heavily altered in order to turn this into a more contemporary tale of mad science in the new millennium, but Kevin Bacon’s slow descent into madness and the curse-like nature of his condition are much closer to the intent of the source material than even Leigh Whannell’s remake.
It also helps that the film boasts several legitimately scary sequences, with Bacon’s deranged performance and voicework (as well as a surprisingly freaky encounter with an invisible Gorilla) making this a highly effective horror film that does the character justice despite a certain overreliance on primitive CGI.
5. Dracula 2000 (2000)
It would be easy to fill this spot with a more popular vampire flick like Renfield, but the fact is that we all need a little bit of schlock in our lives every now and then, and Patrick Lussier’s Hammer-Horror-inspired Nu-Metal horror flick Dracula 2000 delivers this in spades.
Starring Gerard Butler as the titular Count, Dracula 2000 tells the story of a group of thieves who unwittingly revive the hibernating vampire after stealing his coffin from the Van Helsing family vault and bringing it to the United States. What follows is a sexually charged thriller where a newly awakened Dracula wanders the streets of New Orleans in search of new recruits for his vampiric army.
Believe me when I say that this is a lot more fun than it sounds – especially when the film reveals the reasoning behind Dracula’s hatred of Christian iconography.
4. The Frankenstein Theory (2013)
As a longtime fan of low budget Found Footage movies, I have no problem with diving into the streaming bargain bin in order to find the occasional hidden gem. That’s how I came across Andrew Weiner’s unfairly maligned The Frankenstein Theory, an ambitious little mockumentary that dares to imagine a world where Mary Shelley’s seminal novel might have been based on a true story.
While Weiner’s film suffers from a handful of awkward performances and questionable production value, the unusual format coupled with the clever use of practical monster effects make this one of the most entertaining Found Footage romps of the 2010s. In fact, if you ask me, the flick’s poor reception has a lot more to do with genre over-saturation than its actual quality.
3. Blackout (2023)
Larry Fessenden has been hard at work creating his own shared cinematic universe inspired by the Universal Monsters, so it was hard to narrow down a single one of his films to include on this list. However, while both Habit and Deranged are excellent deconstructions of their monstrous inspirations, I feel like Blackout – Fessenden’s take on a modern-day Wolf Man – hasn’t received the same amount of love due to its unconventional presentation.
A surprisingly mellow story about a struggling artist harboring a dark secret, Blackout focuses more on the human cost of living with a terrible curse (or at least being convinced that this is the case) than actually doubling down on familiar creature feature tropes. It may not be for everyone, but this is definitely one of the most original werewolf movies that I’ve seen in a long time.
2. Monster Brawl (2011)
The Universal Monsters have a lot more in common with professional wrestling than you might initially think. From over-the-top backstories to super-powered confrontations between good and evil, it makes sense that a filmmaker would one day decide to combine both of these ideas into a bonkers premise for a feature film. Case in point: Jesse Thomas Cooke’s oddball wrestling film, Monster Brawl.
Presented as a real wrestling event where eight monsters must battle to the death in a hyper-violent tournament, this is a must-watch for wrestling fans who wish that the ring was populated by inhuman fighters. While the writing here won’t win any awards, there’s so much love on display here for both the sport and the monsters that it’s hard to resist the flick’s low budget charms.
1. Frankenstein (2015)
A legend among horror fans due to his work on Candyman and Paperhouse, English filmmaker Bernard Rose is the rare director that treats his genre work just as seriously as his historical dramas. That’s why it’s no surprise that Rose’s urban reimagining of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein is just as emotionally devastating as it is horrific.
Updating the story to be more about the monster than the scientists who created him, this deeply tragic fable is worth watching whether you’re a fan of the source material or just looking to enjoy a star-studded genre flick featuring the likes of Danny Huston, Carrie-Anne Moss and even the late, great Tony Todd.
Pulitzer Prize-winning author Daniel Kraus took the literary world by storm back in 2023 with the release of his hit novel Whalefall. A terrifying yet intimate survival thriller with mythological undertones, the book was almost immediately bombarded with offers from movie studios wanting to adapt its claustrophobic imagery to the big screen.
Fast forward to June of 2026, and we finally got our first glimpse at Brian Duffield’s long-awaited adaptation of Whalefall, starring Austin Abrams as our unfortunate lead who gets swallowed alive by a sperm whale. While this two-and-a-half-minute teaser only covers the beginning of the story, it’s already been making waves online (and in-person at select 4DX promotional screenings) as one of the most stressful cinematic experiences of the year.
In fact, my own wife had to cover her eyes and exclaim, “You’re definitely not dragging me to watch this one” when we saw the whale’s jaws begin to close in on Abrams, with this incident alone already leaving me convinced that this will likely be one of the biggest genre hits of the year. With that in mind, I’d like to invite you to take a closer look at the teaser in order to break down interesting details and get a better idea of what’s in store for genre fans when the movie finally comes out this October.
Of course, as usual, don’t forget to comment below if you noticed something we didn’t!
Now, without further ado, here are five things we learned from the Whalefall trailer!
5. Austin Abrams Performed Many of His Own Stunts
Much like in his previous film, No One Will Save You, Duffield insisted that this visceral experience should be grounded by our main character’s believable reactions, regardless of the plot’s effects-heavy setup. That’s why the camera always makes sure to linger on Abrams through his diving mask, so we know that it’s really him going through this ordeal alongside the audience.
While plenty of CGI was used in order to bring this larger-than-life story to the big screen without killing our leading man, Abrams apparently insisted on performing many of his underwater stunts himself (several of which are visible in the trailer) – much to the chagrin of a worried Duffield and the flick’s stunt coordinator, Shauna Duggins.
4. The Film Seamlessly Transitions Between the California Coast and Underwater Sets
Duffield obviously wasn’t about to drag his crew out to the middle of the ocean and shoot inside a real sperm whale, but it’s reassuring to see the filmmaker blend on-location footage with the underwater tank segments and the literal belly of the whale set.
There may be plenty of CGI stitching these elements together, but the trailer shows us that only the truly impossible shots are completely digital, meaning that the filmmakers didn’t take the easy way out when it came to adapting this unique story.
3. The Whale is Only Part of the Story
Book adaptations tend to leave out inner monologues and the occasional flashback in order to streamline the narrative (which is one reason why it’s so difficult to translate Stephen King novels to the big screen), but a claustrophobic parable like Kraus’ Whalefall would get a bit dull after a while if the whole thing was entirely set within the creature’s stomach.
That’s why it’s such a relief that the trailer hints at how Duffield will also be adapting many of the book’s introspective moments chronicling our protagonist’s harsh upbringing under his troubled father. Not only do these inclusions give the audience some much-appreciated breathing room, but they also give Josh Brolin a chance to shine as a truly complicated character.
2. The Movie is Keeping the Book’s Scientific Accuracy…
While Kraus’ novel was inspired by a viral video of kayakers nearly being swallowed by a humpback whale, the writer ended up consulting with marine biologists about exactly what kind of situation might lead to a whale actually eating a human being alive.
The answer was surprisingly specific, as cetaceans are almost universally known to be friendly towards humans. However, even a gentle giant can make mistakes, and as we see in the trailer, Abrams’ unpleasant fate is more of an accident than anything else – with the massive sperm whale only trapping the poor diver in the first (and thankfully acid-free) chamber of its stomach due to a mix-up involving a giant squid.
Fortunately for the film’s special effects artists, they can now reference the first-ever footage of a real-life sperm whale chowing down on one such squid, as this freaky recording was released late last year.
1. …With a Catch!
Duffield may be doing his best to recreate the grounded (or is it submerged?) thrills of Kraus’ novel, but there are limits to what can be depicted onscreen while still guaranteeing an entertaining movie. That’s why it’s no surprise that Whalefall will take advantage of certain cinematic parlor tricks as the director tests the limits of both physics and biology so we can actually watch his movie.
For starters, the innards of the whale itself have been greatly exaggerated so there’s enough space to make out the action, and in the spirit of movies like Neil Marshall’s The Descent, there also seems to be plenty of non-diegetic lighting meant to show us what’s going on even if Abram’s character wouldn’t necessarily be able to see anything.
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