James Wan (Furious 7, Aquaman) and his production company Atomic Monster are in the early stages of developing a remake to the 1990 horror-comedy Arachnophobia. Frank Marshall‘s original film isn’t remembered particularly well, so this sounds like one of the rare potential remakes of a film who squandered a great idea the first time, rather than a modern re-tooling of a classic.
The original film starred Jeff Daniels and John Goodman, was moderately received, and revolved around “a newly discovered Venezuelan spider being transported to a small American town that produces a new species of deadly spiders, which begin killing the town’s residents one by one. A few brave souls try to track down the queen before the hybrid breed can take hold”.
There’s currently no writer or director attached to the project, but Wan will be on board in a producing role, much like he is with the upcoming Conjuring spin-off, The Nun. With his connection to that horror franchise, one wonders if the Arachnophobia remake will drop the comedy element and go for pure horror instead?
This is naturally a better time than the early 90s for a film revolving around a swarm of spiders, as CGI quality is infinitely superior, and it will be interesting to see how much of the original film remains in this remake.
Having Wan on board in some capacity – the man who originally helped craft both the Saw and Conjuring franchises into box office giants – gives Arachnophobia a huge leg-up, and it wouldn’t be a surprise to see this turn into its own profitable franchise down the line.
#Peace.Love.Arachnophobia
