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The Blaxploitation genre got its start in 1971 with Melvin Van Peebles’ Sweet Sweetbacks BaadAsssss Song, and in the following year, Blacula hit theaters with much fanfare and influenced a wave of other films. The 1972 cult classic will get a new reboot and will follow the same plot as the original film.
By way of an exclusive report from Variety, MGM, Bron, and Hidden Empire Film Group’s Deon and Roxanne Avent Taylor are working on the Black horror revamp. The original film, starring William Marshall and Vonetta McGee, had a 1973 sequel in Scream Blacula Scream, and the reboot will follow the track of the preceding films and pick right up afterward in a major city suffering from a post-coronavirus pandemic according to the outlet.
The description of the film is as follows:
Blacula is an ancient African prince who is cursed by Dracula after he fails to agree to end the slave trade. Blacula is entombed and awakens 200 years later ready to avenge the death of his ancestors and of those responsible for robbing his people of their work, culture and heritage as they appropriated it for profit.
The Blacula reboot will be directed by Deon Taylor and will operate from a script co-written with Micah Ranum. Roxanne Avent Taylor is serving as an executive producer by way of Hidden Empire Film Group. Taylor issued a statement regarding the film as well.
“Blacula is arguably one of the most prestigious Black franchises and so important to the culture as it birthed a groundswell of Blaxploitation-horror films, which changed the game for how our people were seen on the big screen,” Taylor said.
He added, “Growing up in Gary, IN, I loved watching Blacula and was so proud that William Marshall was a fellow Gary native. It’s mind-blowing that this franchise never got the energy or appreciation that other genre films received over the years, but this reboot is about to change all that. Thank you to Aaron, Brenda and team Bron as well as everyone at MGM for joining us on this adventure. We promise to bring new life to the iconic Blacula character that will resonate with audiences worldwide!”
A timeline for release is not yet known.
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