After it was first announced that Shawn Levy (Real Steel) had come aboard to direct a new adaptation of Mary Shelleyâs Frankenstein nearly a year ago, development on 20th Century Foxâs redo slowed considerably. Levy told Steve earlier this year that he planned on using motion-capture for the monster, but he and screenwriter Max Landis (Chronicle) were faced with a competing Frankenstein film by way of the the Aaron Eckhart-fronted I, Frankenstein, which has already wrapped production and is due for release next year.Now it appears that Levy is off the project completely, as Lucky Number Slevin helmer Paul McGuigan has entered talks to direct. Hit the jump for more.Variety reports that McGuigan is now in final talks to take the helm for Fox. Apparently Levy envisioned a big-budget version of the story, while the studio was more keen on taking a smaller approach to the classic tale. Indeed, Levy told Steve this past February that his iteration of Frankenstein wasnât going to be made on a tiny budget:
âThat script is ready to rock, I am ready to rock on that script, but as was reported itâs not a small budget. My Frankenstein, it ainât gonna get done well and the way I would insist on doing it for $35 million. So anytime youâre in like $70-$80 million for a movie, youâre really thinking about âWell who are these two guys?â in our case itâs Igor and Victor Frankenstein, âWhatâs the juicy pairing that makes that a good bet? That makes that financial bet smart and worth it?â because I am in the business of not squandering the money the studios give me to make movies⦠It was more like âOkay if thatâs the budget, weâve gotta make sure we cast it really, really rightâ and so thatâs the moment weâre in.â
Apparently Foxâs version of the story is a ârevisionist, sci-fi takeâ on Shelleyâs novel that centers on themes of friendship and redemption, but no other details are known at this time. With so many Frankenstein projects percolating at different studios, itâs understandable that Fox wants to play this close to the vest. The report doesnât specify whether McGuigan would want a complete rewrite of the script, but hopefully Landis can stay onboard and see this one through. His script for Chronicle was great and Iâm interested to see his version of a âmonster movie.â
Though McGuiganâs last feature, the telekinesis thriller Push, wasnât exactly a home run, heâs expertly helmed four episodes of the fantastic BBC series Sherlock, including season twoâs âA Scandal in Belgraviaâ and âThe Hounds of Baskerville.â Hopefully he has a fresh, character-centric take on the Frankenstein story to bring to the screen.