The Dark Universe is dead, long live the Dark Universe! Despite 2017’s “The Mummy” utterly failed to launch a cinematic universe, it seems like Universal is not ready to give up on a monster universe. After the success of “The Invisible Man,” the studio is already seeing to enter its “Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein” phase by letting Phil Lord and Chris Miller do a monster comedy with Channing Tatum.
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The news comes from Deadline, with a report that the Untitled Monster Comedy is described as “modern-day, tongue in cheek thriller inspired by Universal’s classic monster legacy” will be produced by Phil Lord and Chris Miller, who will re-team with “21 Jump Street” star, Channing Tatum. The script comes in from Wes Tooke, who penned it based on an original idea from “Magic Mike” writer Reid Carolin. The film will be produced by Lord and Miller, alongside Aditya Sood, for their Lord Miller production banner along with Tatum, Carolin, and Peter Kiernan, who will produce through their Free Association banner.
As Deadline notes, Universal has been making moves with their modern-day updates of classic monsters, especially with its partnership with Blumhouse and successful horror directors. After the success of “The Invisible Man,” Leigh Whannell already signed up to make a new adaptation of “The Wolf Man” starring Ryan Gosling, while Karyn Kusama is on board to make a new interpretation of “Dracula.” Other filmmakers like James Wan, Dextre Fletcher, Paul Feig, and Elizabeth Banks all have monster movies in the works at Universal.
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Honestly, “The Invisible Man” was great, and we could use more monster movies, and having Lord and Miller on board a monster comedy — especially one starring Tatum, sounds like a blast. There doesn’t seem to be one single, cohesive voice doing these monster movies, nor an attempt at a cinematic universe where everything is connected, and that feels like the right approach.
