Scott Derrickson has been picked by TriStar to direct their in in-development Labyrinth sequel.
Deadline is reporting that the studio has signed on the Doctor Strange director for the project and that Maggie Levin, who wrote and directed Into the Dark, is set to handle the screenplay.
Directed by Muppets master Jim Henson, Labyrinth starred David Bowie as the Goblin King, who kidnaps a baby, leaving his babysitter played by Jennifer Connelly to enter the Goblin King’s fantasy world to try and rescue him. The film was a modest box office hit but grew in stature through home video.
If they’re going to make this movie – and no one is asking for my permission – then Derrickson is a pretty good choice. His roots are in horror, but his approach to Marvel’s Doctor Strange tempered the horror somewhat for the more general Marvel audience, while still maintaining it as an element in the film. Henson’s original film had some scary elements around its edges and I think it should prove interesting to see what Derrickson will do there.
News of a planned follow-up to the beloved film first broke in January 2016, just two weeks after the passing of star David Bowie. While many complained about the crass timing of the story breaking, the film had actually been in development since late 2014. Guardians Of The Galaxy screenwriter Nicole Perlman was the one developing the screenplay. Fede Alvarez, director of the Evil Dead remake, became attached soon after and by 2018 and took a pass through the script.
It is unclear if Derrickson and Levin are building off of the previous development work or are starting fresh.
In the previous iteration of the project, Bowie’s iconic Goblin King was not going to be making an appearance and there was speculation that the story would focus on Toby, the infant kidnapped by the Goblin King whom Jennifer Connelly’s character Sarah has to rescue in the first film.
