2025, the Year of Iconic Monsters Returns

After the legendary Nosferatu at the end of 2024, a remake of the 1922 silent film and an unofficial adaptation of Bram Stoker’s Dracula, the coming years look quite promising for the mythical monsters of cinema.

The Dark Universe brings together the mystical monsters of Universal Pictures — and there are plenty of them. Initially launched with The Mummy in 2017, the project was abandoned due to its lack of success.

Since then, when horrific creatures come out of the archives, it’s to have their own story, without intertwining with one another. And it has worked quite well so far, particularly with The Invisible Man, released in 2020 and directed by Leigh Whannell, starring Elisabeth Moss in the lead role.

Following the success of the movie, its director will adapt the story of another iconic monster, The Wolfman, who is set to receive an adaptation, once again under the helm of Blumhouse, a production house that needs no introduction to horror fans, a true machine for churning out horror hits (Insidious, Paranormal Activity, The Purge, the recent adaptation of Five Nights at Freddy’s).

The film will star Christopher Abbott (Poor Things) and Julia Garner (Inventing Anna) in the lead roles.

The release is slated for January 17, 2025.

The Bride of Frankenstein will also return to the big screens this year, with The Bride! a movie directed by actress and director Maggie Gyllenhaal, who recently ventured into directing movies with The Lost Daughter, a drama film released in 2021

The film, will star Jessica Buckley and Christian Bale in the roles of the iconic Frankenstein and his just as iconic fiancée. For the rest of the cast, Penélope Cruz will also be a part of the movie, along Jake Gyllenhaal who will also play a mysterious role.

We don’t have much more information about it, but we know something for sure : the movie will also be… a very punk musical. A truly original remake, then, that is likely to break away from the beaten path. A risky gamble, but one that could deliver a pleasant surprise if it succeeds!

The film, distributed by Warner Bros Pictures, is set to release on September 26, 2025.

And next, we’ll have the husband of the bride : Frankenstein himself. But this time, the modern Prometheus will revive under the eye of.. Guillermo del Toro. And yes, the Mexican director and master of the macabre will be directing this remake of Mary Shelley’s book, and I personally can’t wait to see it.

In the cast, a well-known name for the role of Dr. Victor Frankenstein: Oscar Isaac, who recently played Leto Atreides in Dune (2021), and donned the costume of the Moon knight (2022). For the role of the creature, a lesser-known actor than Christian Bale: Jacob Elordi, known for teen productions like The Kissing Booth or Euphoria, or for playing Elvis in Sofia Coppola’s Priscilla.

Mia Goth, the famous Maxine from the X horror trilogy, will also be part of the cast. And finally Christoph Waltz, no stranger to Quentin Tarantino films, is also on the lineup.

The move will be release in 2025 on Netflix.

Blumhouse is teaming up with its subsidiary, Atomic Monster, and has announced a remake of The Mummy.

As for the director? Lee Cronin, the filmmaker behind the hit Evil Dead Rise (which grossed nearly $150 million worldwide), is taking the reins. His production company, Doppelgängers, will also be involved in this adaptation.

After countless adaptations on the big screen, we now might get a horror film that fully embraces its identity. Cronin indeed told The Hollywood Reporter that he wants his film to awaken something very ancient and very frightening. Mysterious, yet quite enticing.

Good news: we have a release date—April 17, 2026, distributed by New Line Cinema. So yes, not 2025 but still worth mentioning.

Apart from The Wolfman, we know little about these adaptations, but we can hope that these remakes bring a fresh perspective to these creatures that have so often haunted our screens. After all, The Invisible Man diverged from the original story to deliver a contemporary remake that proved successful.

The Bride! promises to be very different from the Bride of Frankenstein we know, while the recent success Nosferatu stands out for more boldly exploring the erotic dimension that various adaptations of the iconic vampire have often danced around without fully daring to embrace.

We’ll have to wait and see.