After the dismal box office reaction to 2010's beloved geek film Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, Edgar Wright has been somewhat in the shadows, only producing another beloved geek film, Attack the Block and co-writing the Steven Spielberg 3D animated adventure The Adventures of Tintin. He turned down an opportunity to direct Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol, has been repeatedly tied to a film adaptation of Marvel character "Ant-Man" (co-writing with Attack the Block director Joe Cornish), and recently, he has begun work on the last entry on his Three Flavours Cornetto Trilogy (following Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz). Now he has just signed on to his biggest project yet with a major studio and a major star - Walt Disney Pictures' The Night Stalker, starring Johnny Depp.
The Night Stalker began as a TV movie that aired on ABC, based on a novel which was adapted by famed screenwriter Richard Matheson. It starred Darren McGavin as investigative reporter Carl Kolchak who goes to Las Vegas to pursue a serial killer. Only when he discovers the bodies of the killer's victims, he realizes it is the work of a vampire. As a child, Depp was infatuated with the TV movie and its subsequent (and short-lived) series. The series was produced by Dan Curtis, who also produced another of Depp's favorite series, Dark Shadows (which also received a film adaptation starring Depp).
Although some would think that a Disney film with subject matter including vampires would instantly become a Touchstone Pictures film (a la Fright Night), The Night Stalker is supposed to be tailored to fit a Disney-friendly PG-13 rating. This film marks Depp's seventh collaboration with Walt Disney Pictures (the Pirates of the Caribbean films, Alice in Wonderland, and The Lone Ranger) and Wright's second project with the company (he has been developing "Ant-Man" for Marvel/Disney). Will Wright be able to light the way for The Night Stalker or be left in the dark?