Movies
Writer David Koepp Says His Take on ‘Bride of Frankenstein’ Has Found New Life at Universal
As you may recall, David Koepp (Jurassic Park, Panic Room, and the upcoming You Should Have Left) had penned the script for a new take on Bride of Frankenstein that was going to be part of Universal’s “Dark Universe,” with Bill Condon attached to direct. That project fell by the wayside when the “Dark Universe” quickly died off, but it looks to have found new life.
Speaking with Collider this week, Koepp suggests that the death of the Marvel-style “Dark Universe” has not necessarily meant the death of his Bride of Frankenstein script.
“That was one thing I did during quarantine – I brought back Bride of Frankenstein into a place where I kind of always wanted it to be,” Koepp explained to Collider. “Universal was very gracious to let me try again. Because they had geared up and shut down famously in the Dark Universe fiasco. Well, not fiasco, but disappointment. So I have a version now and they have a version that we all really like. I think they’re talking to directors now.”
He continued, “It’s not the great big, $150 million extravaganza with giant movie stars. It’s not as scaled down as Invisible Man but much more reasonable, doable thing, with, I think, a really cool idea and it’s all present day.”
The previous iteration of Bride of Frankenstein, when the “Dark Universe” was still a thing, was indeed set to be star-studded, with Angelina Jolie in talks to play the title character. The success of Leigh Whannell’s The Invisible Man has marked a whole new chapter for Universal, however, one with a focus on lower budgets and creator-driven, standalone horror films.
If there’s any character who deserves that treatment, it’s no doubt the so-called Bride. After all, she’s a character who hasn’t really been explored on screen over the years. While James Whale’s Bride of Frankenstein is one of the greatest horror films of all time, the Bride herself barely appears in it. And unlike her fellow Universal Monsters, she never returned for more.
Movies
‘Abigail’ on Track for a Better Opening Weekend Than Universal’s Previous Two Vampire Attempts
In the wake of Leigh Whannell’s Invisible Man back in 2020, Universal has been struggling to achieve further box office success with their Universal Monsters brand. Even in the early days of the pandemic, Invisible Man scared up $144 million at the worldwide box office, while last year’s Universal Monsters: Dracula movies The Last Voyage of the Demeter and Renfield didn’t even approach that number when you COMBINE their individual box office hauls.
The horror-comedy Renfield came along first in April 2023, ending its run with just $26 million. The period piece Last Voyage of the Demeter ended its own run with a mere $21 million.
But Universal is trying again with their ballerina vampire movie Abigail this weekend, the latest bloodbath directed by the filmmakers known as Radio Silence (Ready or Not, Scream).
Unlike Demeter and Renfield, the early reviews for Abigail are incredibly strong, with our own Meagan Navarro calling the film “savagely inventive in terms of its vampiric gore,” ultimately “offering a thrill ride with sharp, pointy teeth.” Read her full review here.
That early buzz – coupled with some excellent trailers – should drive Abigail to moderate box office success, the film already scaring up $1 million in Thursday previews last night. Variety notes that Abigail is currently on track to enjoy a $12 million – $15 million opening weekend, which would smash Renfield ($8 million) and Demeter’s ($6 million) opening weekends.
Working to Abigail‘s advantage is the film’s reported $28 million production budget, making it a more affordable box office bet for Universal than the two aforementioned movies.
Stay tuned for more box office reporting in the coming days.
In Abigail, “After a group of would-be criminals kidnap the 12-year-old ballerina daughter of a powerful underworld figure, all they have to do to collect a $50 million ransom is watch the girl overnight. In an isolated mansion, the captors start to dwindle, one by one, and they discover, to their mounting horror, that they’re locked inside with no normal little girl.”
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