With The Mummy slamming shut the crypt door on its planned ‘Dark Universe’ franchise back in 2017, Universal Pictures decided to change tact with its Classic Monster characters.
Rather than looking to ape the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the studio opted instead to adopt a filmmaker-led approach to the iconic properties – a decision that paid earlier this year with the critical and commercial success of Blumhouse Productions’ The Invisible Man.
Along with The Invisible Man, Universal also put a number of other projects into development last year, including Dark Army, a team-up from Bridesmaids and Ghostbusters director Paul Feig which would feature a number of Universal Monsters alongside original creations.
Now, speaking to Collider, Feig has offered an update on Dark Army, revealing that he’s recently completed his second draft and is hopeful that he’ll get the opportunity to make it a reality.
“Universal, they’re not quite sure what they’re doing right now because Invisible Man did really well on a very micro budget, and my movie’s a little more expensive than that,” said Feig. “So I’m hoping to God we get to make it, because I just absolutely love it. I’m so thrilled with it.”
Feig also discussed his appreciation for Universal’s Monster heritage, adding: “I love those movies of the 30s, the James Whale movies, [and] Bride of Frankenstein I still think is one of the greatest films of all time. So I want that tone because those movies were very fun. They treated them seriously, but you also know they were also having a lot of fun with them, so there are a lot of extreme characters in them and funny side characters. That’s what I want, I never wanted to make a horror movie. I want to make a true monster movie.”
SEE ALSO: Producer Jason Blum would love to make more Universal Monsters movies
In addition to Feig’s Dark Army, other Universal Monster projects in the works include Renfield from Dexter Fletcher (Rocketman), The Invisible Woman from Elizabeth Banks (Charlie’s Angels), Dracula from Karyn Kusama (Jennifer’s Body), and an as-yet-untitled film from James Wan (The Conjuring).
