Movies
Dean R. Koontz’s ‘Frankenstein’ Resurrected in Feature Film Form
I guess Uni’s Wolfman redo was enough of a success to light a fire under the ass of a few executives out there. It was announced today that Ralph Winter and Terry Botwick are developing a 21st century Frankenstein tale, acquiring feature rights to Dean Koontz’s Frankenstein through their 1019 Entertainment banner. Koontz has been extremely vocal about his hatred for the feature film (and TV) adaptations of his novels, at one point even swearing off letting them happen; it’ll be interesting to see if they can finally knock one out of the park (odds are against ya buddy, especially since they already failed with the “Frankenstein” TV adaptation).
From Variety:
“The project places the doctor — a socially prominent and successful businessman — and his super-human original creation Deucalion in modern-day New Orleans. The story centers on a pair of street-smart detectives who encounter Deucalion while investigating a murder, leading them to a bizarre array of “engineered” humans.
Three titles in Koontz’s series have been published, with the fourth scheduled for release in June.
Winter and Botwick are aiming to launch a franchise. “These books have enough twists and turns to keep the public coming back to the theaters for many years to come,” the duo said.
“Frankenstein” will be produced by Winter and Botwick along with 1019 Entertainment exec Whitney Thomas.
Prior to forming 1019 Entertainment, Winter had a first-look deal at Fox and produced the “X-Men” trilogy, Tim Burton’s “Planet of the Apes” and the “Fantastic Four” movies. Botwick was previously president of Vanguard Films and Animation and president of Big Idea Prods. He also did stints at CBS and the Family Channel.
The first title in the Frankenstein series, “Prodigal Son,” was published in 2005 by Bantam Books, followed by “City of Night” and “Dead and Alive.” The fourth book, “Lost Souls,” will be published June 22, with the fifth and sixth books to follow in 2011 and 2012. “
It’s now been five years since the release of sequel Happy Death Day 2U, Christopher Landon’s sequel to the Groundhog Day-style slasher movie from 2017. Both films star Jessica Rothe as final girl Tree Gelbman, and director Christopher Landon had been planning on bringing the character – and the actor – back for a third installment. So… where is it?!
We’ve been talking about a potential Happy Death Day 3 for several years now, with the ball in producer Jason Blum’s court. Happy Death Day 2U scared up $64 million at the worldwide box office, a far cry from the first film’s $125 million. But with a reported production budget of just $9 million, that first sequel was profitable for Blumhouse. So again… where is it?!
Chatting with Screen Geek this week while promoting her new action-thriller Boy Kills World, franchise star Jessica Rothe provided a hopeful update on Happy Death Day 3.
“Well, I can say Chris Landon has the whole thing figured out,” Rothe explains. “We just need to wait for Blumhouse and Universal to get their ducks in a row.
Rothe continues in her comments to Screen Geek, “But my fingers are so crossed. I think Tree [Gelbman] deserves her third and final chapter to bring that incredible character and franchise to a close or a new beginning.”
Back in 2020, Christopher Landon had revealed that the working title for the third installment was Happy Death Day to Us, said to be “different than the other two films.”
In the meantime, Christopher Landon is directing a mysterious thriller titled Drop for Blumhouse and Platinum Dunes, along with a werewolf movie titled Big Bad for Lionsgate.
‘Infested’ Review – One of the Best Spiders Attack Horror Movies in Years
Dev Patel’s ‘Monkey Man’ Is Now Available to Watch at Home!
Five Underseen Vampire Horror Movies to Stream This Week
‘Stream’ – Horror Movie from the Team Behind ‘Terrifier’ Sets August Theatrical Release
Limited Edition ‘Creature from the Black Lagoon’ Monster High Doll Releasing This Week!
You must be logged in to post a comment.