Chris Evans encourages fans to loudly share their interest in the Little Shop of Horrors remake he's currently attached to. Since departing the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Evans has racked up a pretty exciting slate of upcoming projects, including his latest collaboration with the Russo brothers, The Gray Man, and the Disney prequel Lightyear. However, the role that might be the one most outside of his typical wheelhouse is that of sadistic singing dentist Orin Scrivello for Little Shop of Horrors. Evans was first confirmed to be in talks for the musical reboot in February of last year.
The latest iteration of Little Shop of Horrors has been in the works for years now, with powerhouse television producer Greg Berlanti slated to direct. Within the last year, it appeared to finally be gaining traction with the additions of stars Evans, Taron Egerton, and Scarlett Johansson. Egerton was tapped to play lead Seymour, the meek florist who pines for his co-worker Audrey (who would be played by Johansson) and becomes an unwitting accomplice to the monstrous growing plant known as Audrey II. Evans' Orin is Audrey's abusive boyfriend.
As part of a virtual conversation with ACE Universe, Evans gave an update on Little Shop of Horrors and explained that because of the new COVID safety guidelines that must be implemented on set, the budget has grown a bit too much. As a result, the film has been on hold for a while. "I actually just emailed Berlanti, the director, a few weeks ago just saying, 'Hey man, I haven't heard anything! What's going on?'" Evans reported. Berlanti told him things are "back and forth right now with Warner Brothers," leaving everything up in the air. "Hopefully if enough people get noisy about it it'll move it right along," Evans concluded. "So please, by all means. Start tweeting. Get loud, because I'm dying to do that."
As was recently shown with the Snyder Cut of Justice League, fan campaigns can persuade studios to back certain projects. Of course, that was a very different situation than Little Shop of Horrors, but Evans' hope that fans' excitement for the film can spur Warner Bros. forward might not be too unfounded. Little Shop of Horrors doesn't seem like it will be a giant blockbuster picture, so it could be easier to get it moving if there's noted interest in the project.
Evans built up quite a reputation for singing on various MCU sets, and fans would love to see his musical talents play out in a movie. That alone could spur fans to back Little Shop of Horrors on social media, though the appeal of seeing Evans and Johansson team up once more will likely help too. The coronavirus pandemic put a stop to numerous projects that were in development, and it would be a shame if Little Shop of Horrors became one of them. Evans wants to do it, and if enough fans campaign for it too, perhaps it just might happen sometime soon.
Source: ACE Universe