Here we are in the last few weeks of 2015 and it has been an interesting year for horror, to be sure. It’s been a mixed bag when it comes to this year in genre but this week, we got some good news about expanding an already existing universe as well as an update on the Universal Monster franchise reboot. Let’s get to it!

Penny Dreadful Comic Books Coming from Titan

If you read my musings here on Nerdist, you know that Penny Dreadful is my favorite show on television. John Logan’s monster mashup is one of the most well-acted, bold, heartfelt, and graphic shows on television. I know that no matter how many episodes Showtime produces, I always feel like I want more. So imagine my delight to learn that a Penny Dreadful comic book is on its way from Titan Comics. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the new comic series will be written by show writers Chris King, Krysty Wilson-Cairns, and Andrew Hinderaker with art being provided by Louie De Martinis of Heavy Metal.

One of the things that I like so much about the series is the fact that there is a fairly large ensemble and all of the characters have such rich backstories. Some of the most successful episodes of the series are flashback episodes, so just think of all of the history we could learn about our favorite characters. I hope we get to delve a little bit more into Sir Malcolm’s time in Egypt — who knows what scary beings lie in store? The Penny Dreadful comics are due out in the spring of 2016.

David Koepp to Pen New Bride of Frankenstein Movie for Universal

This week Variety broke the news that acclaimed screenwriter David Koepp has been hired to write Universal’s Bride of Frankenstein reboot that will be a part of Alex Kurtzman and Chris Morgan’s shared monster universe.

Koepp has penned genre films like Jurassic Park, Death Becomes Her, Stir of Echoes, and Steven Spielberg’s War of the Worlds, just to name a few. I really, really like this fit for the film and am hoping that by hiring screenwriters like Koepp and Aaron Guzikowski (attached to The Wolf Man) to work on these monster titles, it’s a good sign that the studio is not only taking the potential of the franchise seriously but respects the material, too.

According to the report, Universal is still looking to Academy Award winner Angelina Jolie to not only star but direct as well. It’s interesting because in the original Bride of Frankenstein film, the Bride only appears in the last few minutes of the movie. However, with a potential star like Jolie in the mix, I can’t see how that would be the same plan for the new one. It’s also worth noting that this movie will be set in the present day, which gives me a bit of pause. There’s part of me that hopes that even if the movie is set now, perhaps it could take place in a remote village in Europe to give it an isolate, gothic feel. Wishful thinking, right?

—

Featured Image Credit: DeviantArtist thisismyboomstick

Clarke Wolfe writes Horror Happenings for Nerdist every Sunday. You can follow her on Twitter @clarkewolfe.