It’s been a while since the 90s started being officially mined for ideas, and yet for some reason, the book series from R.L. Stine that was required reading for anyone growing up in the decade hasn’t made it to the big screen until now.
However, the news that Disturbia co-writer Carl Ellsworth has been hired to take a stab at the adaptation doesn’t prove it’s any closer to being a done deal, either.
The book series was already put down on screenwriting paper by writing team Larry Karaszewski and Scott Alexander (The People vs Larry Flynt, 1408). This would be a completely fresh script and a renewed commitment by producer Neal Moritz to see the book series brought to life.
Of course, there’s the problem. How do you adapt a brand name? “Goosebumps” books have dozens of different titles and all deal with different children and different scary situations. It would be like creating an Are You Afraid of the Dark? movie – there’s a bit of internal consistency, but for the most part, it’s too disparate to create a singular plot.
Perhaps they should look toward Trick ‘r’ Treat and make an anthology of their kid-friendly scares or maybe they just need to create a strong central character like Zebo the Clown for everything to revolve around.
It’s unclear, but Ellsworth has written horror properties from the Last House on the Left remake to Red Eye, so it’s clear he has the ability to be dark. With Disturbia, he’s also lived firmly in the teenage world. Hopefully, he’ll be able to find a middle ground so that no one bites someone’s penis off at Camp Jelly Jam.
The book series has been on TV (with a jammin’ techno theme song) and on Direct to DVD releases, but this would mark the first time it would see a feature release. If done right, it could be a franchise. The books are massively popular still, and there’s an entire nostalgic generation ready to see Night of the Living Dummy haunt the box office.
Which book should they adapt first?
Source: Risky Business
