‘Arachnophobia’ – Christopher Landon Explains Why His Remake Isn’t Happening
As you may recall, it was announced back in 2022 that Christopher Landon (Happy Death Day, Freaky, Drop) would be directing a new take on Arachnophobia, and while it seems like Amblin and James Wan’s Atomic Monster are still planning to remake the classic film, Landon reveals in a new chat with The Wrap that […]
As you may recall, it was announced back in 2022 that Christopher Landon (Happy Death Day, Freaky, Drop) would be directing a new take on Arachnophobia, and while it seems like Amblin and James Wan’s Atomic Monster are still planning to remake the classic film, Landon reveals in a new chat with The Wrap that his take on the material has been scrapped.
What happened? Creative differences, according to Landon.
The filmmaker explained to The Wrap, “I wrote a script that I loved. I actually think it was one of my best. But the problem with that is that you still have to deal with other people who have different opinions about what kind of movie we should be making. This was a classic case of creative differences and it was something that I was not willing to change.”
“Everybody moved on and that was just the way that it went. But at least it was a calm separation,” Landon continued, going on to divulge some details about his remake plans.
Christopher Landon’s Arachnophobia was to center on a spider invasion in a “West Texas town,” with a “brutal” body horror approach to the material that would’ve seen the villainous spiders laying eggs inside human bodies (gross!). Landon also notes that the town would be in the midst of a mayoral race when “all hell breaks loose” due to the spider invasion.
Landon notes in the interview with The Wrap, “I wrote something I felt was very plot-driven. I had much bigger set pieces than the original. It was definitely a more expensive movie. That was another thing I think that made everybody a little bit nervous.”
Stay tuned for more on Amblin and Atomic Monster’s Arachnophobia remake, which may still happen even if Christopher Landon’s concept has been abandoned at this time.
Jeff Daniels starred in the original 1990 movie alongside John Goodman, Julian Sands and Harley Jane Kozak. In director Frank Marshall’s Arachnophobia, “A new species of South American spider hitches a lift to a California town and starts to breed, leaving a trail of deaths that puzzle and terrify young Dr. Ross Jennings, who is newly arrived in town with his family.”
