Another day, another reboot. Columbia Pictures is setting up a revival of their 1997 hit “Anaconda.” Jack Black and Paul Rudd are in early talks to star in a “re-imagining” of the movie. Tom Gormican (“The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent”) is set to direct and write the feature (via THR).
The 1997 original starred Jennifer Lopez, Owen Wilson, Ice Cube and Jon Voight, and followed a National Geographic movie crew, traveling to the Brazilian rain forest, hunting for the world’s largest and deadliest snake. Soon enough, the tables are turned, and the large reptile starts hunting them down, taking one victim at a time.
According to THR’s sources, the new story “involves a group of friends facing mid-life crises who are remaking their favorite movie from their youth. They head to the rainforest only to find themselves into a fight for their lives against natural disasters, giant snakes and violent criminals.”
The project has been in development at Columbia since early 2023 and has gone through “many rewrites” as the filmmaker and studio tried to find the right balance of tones. Given Rudd and Black’s casting, I would bet Gormican’s take on “Anaconda” will have humor added in with the horror.
Netflix and Skydance Animation have also called it quits. The two sides announced Monday that they're ending the animated film deal struck back in 2023, framing it as a mutual decision.