Preview:
- Robert Eggers is reportedly to make a new ‘Labyrinth’ movie.
- The likes of Scott Derrickson and Fede Álvarez have been attached in the past.
- The 1986 original starred Jennifer Connelly and David Bowie.
Writer/director Robert Eggers has his most recent stab at celluloid fear, ‘Nosferatu’ on screens at the moment. The movie, a new version of what was a bootleg take on ‘Dracula’ features some truly creepy character work and both psychological and physical horror.
Given that, and his history with movies such as ‘The Witch,’ ‘The Northman’ and ‘The Lighthouse,’ he might not appear to be the first person you’d think to tackling a remake of a film originally brought to screens by Muppet maestro Jim Henson, which for all its scarier themes, is mostly a family fantasy adventure.
And yet, at least according to reporter Jeff Sneider, that’s exactly what could happen, as Sony has Eggers setting his sights on a reboot of 1986 movie ‘Labyrinth.’
17018What’s the story of ‘Labyrinth’?
The original movie was directed by Henson and naturally features a fair amount of fresh felt creations from his workshop.
Jennifer Connelly stars as Sarah Williams, a teenager forced by her father and stepmother to babysit her baby stepbrother, Toby, while they are out.
The child will not stop crying, and Sarah wishes that he would be taken away. Out of the blue, he stops crying and when she looks for him in his crib, she learns that her wish was granted, and the Goblin King Jareth (David Bowie) has taken him to his castle in the Goblin City in the middle of a labyrinth. Sarah repents and asks Jareth to give him back, but Jareth tells her that she has to rescue him before midnight.
Sarah finds some willing allies, but the question remains… Will they rescue Toby in time?
Henson came up with the original story alongside Dennis Lee, and script duties were handed over to Monty Python member Terry Jones (with Elaine May contributing an uncredited polish to boost the characters and humor of Sarah and Jareth).
Related Article: Brian Henson Talks ‘Labyrinth’ Digital Re-Release and Playing Hoggle
What has happened with the new version so far?
Eggers considering the new movie might not be as strange as it sounds, as Sony and the Jim Henson Company (run by Henson’s daughter, Lisa) has had horror filmmakers attached in the past.
There have been loose plans to make a new ‘Labyrinth’ film for several years, though a direct sequel would certainly seem to be a tough ask given the death of Bowie in 2016. The challenge of finding someone who could channel his unique energy is surely a huge one.
At one point, ‘Alien: Romulus’ filmmaker Fede Álvarez was planning to direct before he announced in 2020 that he had stepped down. At the time, it was reported that the project was still moving forward with ‘Doctor Strange’ and ‘The Black Phone’ director Scott Derrickson taking over at the helm.
Yet Derrickson revealed last year that his version had stalled at the script stage. Here’s what he told Comicbook.com:
“I don’t know what’s happening with that. We never got the script all the way to a place where the studio wanted to make it, but I was very proud of the work that we did on it. And it’s a hard, hard project to turn into something commercially viable, because it’s so imaginative and surreal that there’s no way that it can be done cheaply. And at the same time, it’s so daring and different that it is a tough movie for a studio to feel competent that it has enough commercial value to earn a profit. So I think that it’s a tough nut to crack, but all I can tell you is I’m very proud of the work that we did on it. We certainly had a great film in mind. Because the project is still in development, I probably shouldn’t say… I think we had a really cool idea, but I don’t want to blow that in case the movie does get made.”
While the issue of Bowie remains up in the air, Connelly has said that she at least had conversations about returning, though she admitted to Collider that she wasn’t sure where the movie was going to land.
According to Brian Henson –– Jim’s son and a director in his own right who also works for the family company, there is still life in the project, according to his statement to Comicbook.com:
“That’s a question you have to ask my sister. My sister Lisa, who’s CEO of the Jim Henson Company. That is a project that we are very excited about, but we can’t talk about it.”
Nothing official has yet been said about Eggers’ involvement, nor whether he’ll look to make a legacy sequel or re-imagine the original (as he has with his atmospheric ‘Nosferatu’), but we’d certainly be intrigued to see what might result. Does anyone have a set of juggling crystal balls we can use to get a glimpse?
When will then new ‘Labyrinth’ be in theaters?
With the film still seemingly stuck in development limbo, we’re not even going to guess at this point when it might head to theaters.
But if Eggers can actually make it happen, then it has a stronger chance than ever of actually getting to screens.
List of Robert Eggers Movies:
- ‘The Witch‘ (2016)
- ‘The Lighthouse‘ (2019)
- ‘The Northman‘ (2022)
- ‘Nosferatu‘ (2024)
American Gods.”
It’s been 15 years since the release of “
1. The character of Derek Zoolander originated in 1996, when Stiller’s friend 
2. Stiller named “Zoolander” villain Mugatu after a white-haired, ape-like monster from the original “Star Trek” series. The tufts of curly white hair on 
3. Ferrell won the antagonist role when frequent Stiller collaborator 
The Swedish actor was visiting his dad, actor 
7. 
9. Stiller had a Zoolander moment for real during the scene where 
10. In one scene, Wilson’s Hansel wears a jumpsuit with a name tag that reads, “Kumar.” This is supposedly an homage to actor 
12. “Zoolander” cost a reported $28 million to make and earned back $45 million in North America and another $16 million abroad.
13. The unflattering references to Malaysia got “Zoolander” banned in that country. Elsewhere in Asia, the references were changed to “Micronesia.”
14. A surprise “Zoolander” fan is artsy director 
15. It took a while for “Zoolander” to be appreciated as a cult hit, thanks to cable and home video. Stiller has said that’s why it took so long to get a sequel greenlit.
Losing 
1. Monty Python’s 
2. Among the teen actresses who auditioned for the lead role of Sarah were 
3. Jareth was supposed to be just another puppet until Henson decided the role would work better with a charismatic rock star in the part. Among the names tossed around were 
4. “Labyrinth” wears its influences, which come from all over, on its sleeve. 
5. Hoggle, Sarah’s gnome-like guide (above), was the most difficult character to animate. It took the carefully coordinated efforts of five of Henson’s crew to make him work — one performer inside the costume and four more controlling his facial movements (jaw, lips, eyelids, and eyebrows) via radio remote controls. Jim Henson’s son, 
6. The film’s choreography — in this case, acting and movement coaching for the puppeteers — is credited to Cheryl McFadden. A year later, she became famous as Star Trek: The Next Generation.”
7. The entire forest set was built indoors, on a British soundstage. It involved 40,000 sprays of fake leaves, 850 pounds of real dried leaves, 120 truckloads of tree branches, 1,200 patches of sod, 133 bags of lichen, and 35 mossy bundles of “old man’s beard.”
8. Shortly after Bowie’s death in January 2016, news came out that the Jim Henson company was preparing a reboot of “Labyrinth,” to be scripted by “
9. Sarah’s kidnapped baby brother, Toby, was played by 
10. “Labyrinth” cost a reported $25 million to make but returned only $12.9 million at the North American box office. Brian Henson has said the movie’s box office failure depressed his father, but he did live long enough to see the film become a cult success on home video before his death in 1990.
As the writer-director behind romantic comedy classics like “
Nearly one month after rock and fashion icon David Bowie passed away, his loss is still reverberating across the globe. Now, a special public tribute has been planned for the late star, featuring another chameleonic performer.