After years of trying to sort out a sequel to Will Smith’s I Am Legend it looks as though Warner Bros. have finally given up… and will instead reboot the ailing sci-fi franchise.
It’s been a good six years since Will Smith became the last man on earth for the eagerly awaited I Am Legend… but while a sequel to the 2007 hit seemed inevitable, it looks as though the studio has given up on the last man on earth. Instead, it seems we’ll be getting a reboot that probably won’t feature Will Smith at all.
According to Deadline Hollywood, Warner Bros. has finally found a way to extend the 2007 blockbuster into another (potentially) hit franchise… but Smith will probably have to sit this one out.
“The studio is working on a reboot that isn’t meant to star Smith,” they explain, who has apparently been reluctant to do sequels. “[WB] is retrofitting A Garden At The End Of The World, a spec script that the studio bought back in April from Gary Graham”
It seems that Graham got his big break after posting a spec script on Black List… which was later bought by Warner Bros. while Graham continued to work at the Apple store in midtown Manhattan.
“When Graham was brought in to rewrite his script, the studio by then had talked to the I Am Legend producers and noted enough similarities to the themes and mythology of that film that they asked the scribe to consider a redraft to fit that property.”
Of course, the studio has previously attempted to revitalise I Am Legend with a planned prequel… but after bringing in Arash Amell to write a script that would bring back scientist Robert Neville, it seems they just couldn’t make it work.
Attempting to turn I Am Legend into an all-new franchise, this is the fourth time that Richard Matheson’s novel has been adapted for the big screen – perhaps most prominently in Charlton Heston’s The Omega Man. But do we really need another reboot?
Although it’s unlikely that Will Smith would consider a return, I can’t help thinking that Hollywood is beginning to go stale… and while Matheson’s novel (and the story of I Am Legend) remains a classic, it seems as though it could easily exist as a separate property.
But hey, let’s tag on the I Am Legend title for a bit of buzz, shall we?
A cynical ploy, maybe… but having said that, I can’t help but feel a little excited at the prospect of stepping back into that world. But will it be as good as I Am Legend or The Omega Man? For now, we’ll have to wait and see.
Do you think I Am Legend could be the next big Hollywood franchise? Who will step into the role of Robert Neville? Let us know what you think in the comments below…
