Looks like Universal is going to dip into the old horror title pool to grab some of the sweet, sweet love that genre pics are getting at the box office these days. THE WOLF MAN, originally brought to life by Lon Chaney Jr. is up for a re-do.
At first blush this is not a project I’d get all that excited about, but there are two important mitigating factors. One is that Benicio Del Toro is going to play the fuzzy menace. To tell you the truth, I’d go see BARNEY: THE MOVIE if Del Toro was in it. I might not like it, but I’d do it.
The other promising factor is screenwriter Andrew Kevin (SEVEN). The project will add some frightening new twists to a familiar tale, adding several characters and plot points that take advantage of cutting-edge visual effects technology. All good, and with a twisted mind like Kevin behind the update, it’s hard for me not to get inappropriately excited.
The one note of caution that must be sounded is that the pic is planned as a 2008 summer tentpole. Despite the talent on board, summer tentpole screams PG-13 rating to me. Hopefully the studio won’t be short sighted anough to pull the teeth out of this WOLF MAN thus causing the movie, instead of the character, to bite.
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