Shawn Levy May Drop One Remake for Another, Jumping From ‘Fantastic Voyage’ to ‘Frankenstein’

Tim Grierson
·Editor
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Currently, there are several potential Frankenstein films kicking around Hollywood, but as with a lot of competing projects, many of them will fall by the wayside once one of them asserts itself and gains momentum. In the case of the big guy with the bolts in his head, Fox may end up being the big winners now that "Real Steel" director Shawn Levy is interested in doing their "Frankenstein." At least that's what Deadline is hearing.

The site's Michael Fleming says he's "hearing persuasively" that Levy is about ready to jump aboard the remake/reboot based on the Mary Shelley novel. If Levy does that, though, it means that he's definitely exiting Fox's "Fantastic Voyage," which he's been attached to since February. That's a long time without anything happening, but Fox had balked at "Voyage's" hefty price tag. It probably also means that Levy's attempts to woo Will Smith for the film either fell through or weren't looking promising.

Fox and Levy have a close relationship. Not counting "Real Steel," five of the last six films he's directed have been for the studio. Plus, Levy's company, 21 Laps, is housed at Fox. So Levy's decision to move to "Frankenstein" would keep him in the Fox fold while helping the studio pour water on a lot of rival Frankenstein projects. At this point though, with high-priced films like "The Lone Ranger" having to trim their budgets, there's no guarantee that "Frankenstein" won't run into the same problems that made "Fantastic Voyage" such a headache. (It also doesn't help that the most recent horror remake, Universal's "The Wolfman," was an under-performer.)

So forgive us if we're less optimistic about the whole thing than Fleming is: We're still a little ways away from there definitely being a new "Frankenstein." As for the old "Frankenstein," it's almost exactly 80 years old now. The trailer for the original claimed there could never be another. Fox is hoping that's not true.

Shawn Levy Eyeing Fox's Frankenstein [Deadline]