The eight film Leprechaun horror franchise is about to get a ninth installment, with Lionsgate recently hiring director Felipe Vargas (Milk Teeth) to “reimagine” the franchise.

But what can we expect from this next installment in the long-running saga? Felipe Vargas sat down with Splattercast ahead of St. Patrick’s Day to tease the new movie.

Vargas tells the show, “I’m so honored to be on that project. It’s such a cool franchise. To me what makes the franchise so special is that it really is limitless. It doesn’t need to be grounded. It can just be gory, sexy, crazy.”

“We’re still figuring out that tone,” he continues. “And the balance between horror and comedy. I would love for it to be scary as hell and also hilarious. I think we’re going back to a lot of the roots of Leprechaun in a lot of different ways, which I’m really excited about. But I think you also want to bring on a new audience. So it’s a really tricky one to figure out.”

Vargas goes on to note that he’s going for a bit of an “elevated vibe” with his Leprechaun movie, which he calls a “reinvention” of the franchise. Does that mean we’re getting another new Leprechaun, rather than the original Warwick Davis incarnation? Vargas explains that the film hasn’t reached the casting stage, as the team is still figuring out the script.

One final aspect Vargas touches upon is the effects, which he teases will be as practical as possible. “That’s a part of my initial pitch. I think the practical effects are so key,” Vargas explains to the Splattercast in their chat. “Definitely want to bring that back in a big way.”

Stay tuned for more on the Leprechaun reboot and watch the full interview below.

Mike Van Waes wrote the screenplay. Roy Lee is producing through Vertigo Entertainment.

“Thirty years after its debut, this franchise still casts a spell, and we’re thrilled to be bringing it back with a new vision,” Erin Westerman, president of production for Lionsgate’s Motion Picture Group, said in a statement. “Roy and Miri are two of our most trusted producers, especially with this genre, and we’re excited by Felipe’s vision for the film as a director.

“In his hands, this movie should be very scary and a ton of fun.”

The Leprechaun franchise kicked off with Mark Jones’s original horror-comedy in 1993, which was followed by five Warwick Davis-starring sequels, a reboot, and later Leprechaun Returns in 2018. Even though Leprechaun Returns was a sequel to the original movie, Linden Porco took over the role of the title character, played by Dylan Postl for Leprechaun Origins.