Monster Squad Finds A Shrek-Type Director

If you are like me (and we can only hope you have more of a life than I do), then when you read the title you were hoping it was a remake or sequel to the awesome young boys monster movie from the 80’s, The Monster Squad. Alas, this is not the case because the Warner Bros film was previously titled Nightcrawlers and will be a supernatural action comedy. Great, that means somewhere Will Ferrell will make a ridiculous cameo or heaven forbid, have a starring role.

Warner Bros. Studios has tapped Mike Mitchell (Sky High, Shrek Forever After) to helm the new Monster Squad movie which will work off of a nine year-old spec script written by Brian Lynch and rewritten by Brad Copeland (Wild Hogs). Donald De Line (The Italian Job) is attached to produce and the studio hopes to start filming next summer 2010.

What will Monster Squad be about? The folks over at Coming Soon have dug up a couple of different synopses for the film and they don’t seem to mesh. The one from IMDB lists it as:

“An action comedy about a neurotic father who faces off against monsters from his childhood.”

But The Hollywood Stock Exchange has had the film up since 2000 and their synopses read like this:

“Nightcrawlers are a group of kids who must battle the dark demons of the night.”

The Hollywood Stock Exchange also shows Terminator Salvation’s McG attached to direct and since we know that information to be incorrect now, maybe the studio decided to go in a different direction entirely.

Director Mike Mitchell

I’m not sure which one I like better to be honest. If they go with the kids, then the movie will feel strangely like the original Fred Dekker-directed film; and if WB continues to insist that the new movie is not a remake or related to the old movie, then it will probably suffer at the hands of bloggers and critics everywhere. However, if they go the other route, the father confronting monsters from his childhood, then I just fear it will turn into a vehicle for Will Ferrell, Seth Rogen or *gasp* Brendan Fraser!

We can hope they go with a more unknown face to star but with this not being a comic book, cartoon or novel (graphic or otherwise) to help drive branding, that probably will not happen. As more information comes in, we’ll keep you up-to-date with it.

What do you think about Monster Squad and who do you think they might get to play the dad – assuming they go in that direction? Anyone you would NOT want to see playing the role of the father?

Monster Squad currently has no scare date.

Source: Coming Soon