Johnny Depp likes to disappear into his characters, but usually not this literally. The actor who likes to hide behind heavy makeup, garish hats, wacky hairstyles and unlikely contact lenses has just been cast as The Invisible Man in Universal’s upcoming reboot of the beloved horror franchise (via Deadline).
The original film, based on the 1897 novella by H.G. Wells, starred Claude Rains as Jack Griffin, a scientist who discovered a way to become invisible to the naked eye and then went mad with power, derailing trains and murdering anyone who got in his way. The film’s visual effects were revolutionary in 1933 (and still look pretty danged good today), and the film was such a success that it spawned four spin-offs about various invisible characters.
Also: The 50 Best Horror Movies of the 21st Century (So Far)
Universal’s upcoming reboot of The Invisible Man is part of its ongoing effort to build a shared continuity of monsters, similar to the Marvel Studios stable of heroes. Tom Cruise has signed up to star in an all-new The Mummy, and a Dracula reboot was already released in 2014, but Universal has decided to more-or-less forget that movie happened because it wasn’t very good and didn’t make much money.
So they’re pushing for star power in these new reboots (Angelina Jolie is also rumored to be up for The Bride of Frankenstein), and Johnny Depp still has plenty of it, especially with already popular properties. But will Universal’s latest attempt to reboot their horror franchise be a hit like Stephen Sommers’ Mummy films, or a bomb like Van Helsing, The Wolfman and Dracula Untold?
We’ll just have to wait and see, assuming that’s even possible what with the whole invisibility thing and all.
Photo: Mark Davis / Getty Images North America
William Bibbiani (everyone calls him ‘Bibbs’) is Crave’s film content editor and critic. You can hear him every week on The B-Movies Podcast and watch him on the weekly YouTube series Most Craved and What the Flick. Follow his rantings on Twitter at @WilliamBibbiani.
