Leigh Whannell is in talks to direct Ryan Gosling’s “Wolfman” for Universal, and Jason Blum’s Blumhouse Productions has signed on to produce the film alongside Gosling, an individual with knowledge of the situation told TheWrap.
Whannell and Blumhouse just collaborated on “The Invisible Man,” which Universal released and grossed $124 million worldwide on a $7 billion budget. Whannell has a first-look deal across film and TV with Blumhouse, and the production banner also produced Whannell’s critically-acclaimed 2018 film “Upgrade.” Over the course of 10 years, Whannell and Blumhouse have collaborated on seven projects.
Whannell will also write the treatment for the film, while Lauren Schuker Blum and Rebecca Angelo will write the script. Plot details of “Wolfman” are currently unknown.
Universal’s other classic monsters include Dracula, Frankenstein, The Mummy, and Creature from the Black Lagoon. Monster movies released by Universal include Tom Cruise’s recent iteration of ‘The Mummy,” which received negative reviews and was a box office disappointment. It was recently announced Karyn Kusama would direct a new “Dracula” movie for Blumhouse Productions.
Whannell’s other writing credits include the “Insidious’ franchise, the ‘Saw” franchise and “The Mule.” He executive produced films like the “Saw” films,” “Cooties” and most recently, “Spiral.” Next up, he will direct the “Escape from New York” remake.
He is represented by CAA and Myman Greenspan Fox Rosenberg Mobasser Younger & Light LLP.