Their remake of **Friday The 13th **comes out this Friday (hey! That’s the 13th! What a coincidence!), but Platinum Dunes, Michael Bay’s production company that specialises in horror reboots, isn’t wasting any time in chivvying along its revamp of Freddy Krueger and A Nightmare On Elm Street.
Having finally been given the green light last month by New Line, the studio that holds the rights to Wes Craven’s razor-fingered dream-haunting creation, Platinum Dunes has hired music video director Samuel Bayer to direct the Nightmare remake.
If all goes according to plan, the film will start shooting in the summer, and will mark the directorial debut of Bayer, a gifted chap who has called the shots on videos for the likes of Green Day, Smashing Pumpkins and Nirvana (Smells Like Teen Spirit is his).
Mind you, his first feature has been a long time in coming – he was attached to Platinum Dune’s remake of Near Dark, before that was kyboshed by Twilight, while he’s also been attached to films like Fiasco Heights and Brilliant. But nothing has so far panned out – Nightmare, though, looks like a sure thing, and continues Platinum Dunes’ policy of working with filmmakers who have come from a background similar to Bay’s.
Of course, as we expressed recently with our story about the Thing prequel, which will be directed by a first-timer from the world of commercials, it would be hypocritical of us to give Bayer a pass. After all, he could be merely all about the visuals, and not about the scares. But we’ll have to wait and see – let’s hope he’s more David Fincher than Dave Meyers, the guy who directed the remake of The Hitcher.
As for another element of the Nightmare remake, the casting of Freddy Krueger himself is said to be close. We’ll bring you news on that as we get it, obviously.
And – hey! - if you want to read more about the back story of both the Nightmare and Friday The 13th franchises, why not pick up this month’s issue of Empire, now on sale, for in-depth features on both?