Richard Matheson is one of the great modern horror/sci-fi/fantasy writers, and at 86, he has not resolved to put away the typewriter. The author will adapt his classic THE SHRINKING MAN for MGM, it was announced today, and he’ll pen it with his son, Richard Matheson, Jr., also an accomplished writer.
The original book’s synopsis goes like this:
Inch by inch, day by day, Scott Carey is getting smaller. Once an unremarkable husband and father, Scott finds himself shrinking with no end in sight. His wife and family turn into unreachable giants, the family cat becomes a predatory menace, and Scott must struggle to survive in a world that seems to be growing ever larger and more perilous–until he faces the ultimate limits of fear and existence.
“The themes of The Shrinking Man continue to be relevant,” says Jonathan Glickman, president of MGM’s motion picture group. “And the Mathesons’ cutting-edge ideas for the adaptation will make for a great film that will play all over the world.”
The story was adapted in 1957 by Matheson himself in a film directed by Jack Arnold (it was titled THE INCREDIBLE SHRINKING MAN); this new version will of course modernize the setting and focus on technological advancements such as nanotechnology.
Hollywood has long been using Matheson’s works as a resource: I AM LEGEND, REAL STEEL, DUEL, STIR OF ECHOES and THE BOX (to name a few) were all based on Matheson stories. The writer is perhaps most fondly remembered for his contributions to “The Twilight Zone”.
No director has come aboard THE SHRINKING MAN as of yet.
