Following in the shared universe footsteps of Marvel, DC Comics and Warner Bros. MonsterVerse starring King Kong and Godzilla, Universal Pictures have formally announced their shared universe of classic monsters, Dark Universe.
The Dark Universe starts with the rebooted The Mummy film, which lands in UK cinemas June 9, and is going to be followed by a series of monster films.
Here’s everything we know so far about the Dark Universe.
Table of Contents
The Mummy
The Dark Universe officially kicks off with the reboot of The Mummy, which is released this week and is headlined by Tom Cruise and Sofia Boutella as the titular character.
Universal had planned that Dracula Untold would be the start of the monsters reboot, but the film wasn't particularly panned by the critics, so they've started it again with The Mummy.
Dark Universe movies planned
So, it all kicks off with The Mummy, but who else is getting their own film? There’s going to be Bride of Frankenstein and The Invisible Man. Universal also has remakes of The Wolfman, Van Helsing, and The Creature From The Black Lagoon in various stages of pre-production.
How The Dark Universe films will work together
The Mummy director Alex Kurtzman is taking a lead role when it comes to the Dark Universe films, he's going to produce them all and will work with Chris Morgan in this role.
It's suggested that the films will work together and be linked by Prodigium, an organisation we imagine will be similar to SHIELD. The Prodigium will be run by Doctor Henry Jekyll, played by Russell Crowe who will be making a cameo in The Mummy.
Bride of Frankenstein
Following The Mummy will be Bride of Frankenstein, which is set to be directed Beauty and The Beast helmer Bill Condon, and star Javier Bardem as Frankenstein’s monster.
It’s currently planned for February 14, 2019. Yes, what a beautiful film for Valentine’s Day.
In a statement, Universal chairman Donna Langley described the project as the "story of a very modern woman in a very classic tale." Universal said casting for the lead character, first played by Elsa Lanchester in the 1935 classic, will be announced soon.
The Creature From The Black Lagoon
The film is set for 2019, and it doesn't have much going for it other than the fact it has a writer, Will Beall, who also wrote Aquaman.
Currently listed for 2019, it's without a director or cast but it does have a writer in Will Beall who wrote the script for Aquaman. The story follows a prehistorical creature unearthed in a... well, a black lagoon deep in the Amazon.
The Invisible Man
Johnny Depp will play The Invisible Man, a film scheduled for 2020. The story is about a scientist who manages to make himself invisible, but he is able to reverse it.
Van Helsing
We don't have a release date yet planned for Van Helsing, but it is on the cards. The Dutch Doctor is pretty much the enemy to all of the monsters because he works to overturn them.
The Wolfman
The Wolfman doesn't have a release date yet either, with Aaron Guzikowski writing the script.
What about Dracula?
Curiously missing completely from the Dark Universe so far is one of the most popular movie monsters of all time Dracula. Like we mentioned above the monsters reboot was due to start with Dracula Untold starring Luke Evans, but the film didn't get the reception that was expected.
However, Luke Evans has previously spoken about how the character is still active in the Dark Universe.