Guillermo del Toro might have recently announced that he's aiming to take a year's break from directing films now that The Shape Of Water is out. Yet that isn't stopping the ever-busy filmmaker from lining up future projects for himself and looking to hand over one other job to fellow director Scott Cooper.
Let's talk about del Toro's own planned project first. He's now attached to write and direct a remake of 1974's Nightmare Alley, which in its original form saw Tyrone Power as an ambitious con man who starts working with a female psychiatrist who is even more corrupt than he. Their partnership is a successful one as they fleece a lot of customers with a mentalist act, but then she turns the table on him.
Del Toro isn't necessarily looking for this to be his next film as director – there's that break to consider, and he has a wealth of potential projects. And he still has to write the script with Kim Morgan.
As for the Cooper project, the man behind Out Of The Furnace and the upcoming Hostiles is in talks to handle supernatural thriller Antlers. Adapted from Nick Antosca's short story by the author and Henry Chaisson, the horror sees a young teacher discovering that a student's family hides a terrifying secret, one that she has to fight for survival against when she takes the boy into her care.
The new movies mark del Toro teaming back up with Fox Searchlight, which released The Shape Of Water. “I am delighted to continue the producing partnership that has been forged with Fox Searchlight during the making of The Shape Of Water," del Toro tells Variety. “Nancy, Steve, David and Matthew and the entire team are great champions of true cinema. With both Nightmare Alley and Antlers I know we will create entertaining, elevated films."
The Shape Of Water hits UK cinemas on 14 February, while Cooper's Hostiles is out on 5 January.