BumblebeehelmerTravis Knighthas signed on to direct the vampire movieUprisingfor Netflix andShawn Levy’s 21 Laps banner.
Based onRaymond Villareal’s bookA People’s History of the Vampire Uprising, the action-thriller takes place in the midst of a global pandemic as a virus starts turning people into vampires. The story finds CIA agent Lauren Webb racing against time to uncover the truth behind a growing uprising that threatens to wipe out all of humanity.
Jeremy Slater(Moon Knight) wrote the latest draft of the screenplay, with previous drafts penned byJay Basuand the writing team ofJD PayneandPatrick McKay.Levy andDan Cohenare producing for 21 Laps, whoseEmily Morriswill oversee the project for the company, which has an overall deal with Netflix.
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Though Knight comes from the world of animation, having served as the CEO of Laika since 2006, studios have been courting him for high-profile live-action movies ever since hisTransformersspinoffBumblebeeelicited strong reviews from critics and audiences alike. Henearly directed theUnchartedmoviestarringTom HollandandMark Wahlbergbut I think he was wise to wait for the right follow-up to come along. Knight previously directed the Oscar-nominatedKubo and the Two Strings, and he also oversaw Laika productions such asCoralineandParaNorman.
Netflix has already sunk its fangs into the vampire genre, which never seems to die, pun intended. The streamer hasJamie Foxxstarring in theupcoming vampire thrillerDay Shift,and also released the French-language seriesVampireslast year, plus its hit anime seriesCastlevaniainvolves Count Dracula, as does theDraculaseries starringClaes Bang. There’s alsoImmortalsandV WarsandVampires vs. the Bronx, which is actually worth a look. The point is that vampires are still very popular post-Twilight, so expect Netflix to cast a big star inUprisingnow that Knight is at the helm.
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