20 years on, Hugh Jackman's panned vampire horror movie is getting resurrected as a TV series
20 years on, Hugh Jackman's panned vampire horror movie is getting resurrected as a TV series
Fangtastic news, Van Helsing fans! The Bram Stoker creation is getting another adaptation – and this time, he'll be hunting monsters in modern-day New York City for a TV series at CBS.
According to Deadline, the latest take on the 2004 action horror movie, which starred Kate Beckinsale and Hugh Jackman, will see the titular monster hunter, Dr. Abraham Van Helsing, team up with "relentless" FBI agent Mina Harker – who just so happens to be his ex – to solve supernatural cases up and down New York City.
The show is being written by Who Killed Jill Dando? producer Jonathan Lee, with Elementary creator Rob Doherty lined up to executive produce. Justified's Carl Beverly and Sarah Timberman are also on board.
Directed by The Mummy's Stephen Sommers, Van Helsing saw Jackman, who'll next be seen in Deadpool & Wolverine, take on the eponymous role. In the film, the character is tasked by the Vatican to travel to Transylvania and protect Anna (Beckinsale) and Velkan Valerious (Will Kemp), the last living members of an ancient Romanian family, and kill powerful vampire Count Dracula.
It was panned by critics upon its cinema release, scraping a less-than-favorable 24% on Rotten Tomatoes – thought it's worth noting that it made a respectable $300.2 million at global the box office. Since then, it has gone on to be reconsidered as a campy, fun blend of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, George Waggner's The Wolf Man, and Bram Stoker's Dracula, in which the character first appeared, by fantasy-horror lovers, in the same vein as Constantine or Hellboy.
No doubt the project was greenlit in part due to the success AMC is having with Interview with the Vampire, which is currently being hailed as one the best shows of 2024 and was just renewed for a third season.
Given that it's such early days, CBS has yet to announce a premiere date for Van Helsing, but we'll be sure to keep you posted. In the meantime, check out our list of the most exciting new TV shows heading our way.