Zombies never stay dead, and neither do zombie movies. I Am Legend is coming back for a second go-round. This time, though, star Will Smith will be joined by Black Panther and Creed actor Michael B. Jordan, Deadline reports.
The I Am Legend sequel marks the first time the two stars have worked together. In addition to starring in the film, the duo will produce as well. Akiva Goldsman, who wrote the original adaptation, will reportedly pen the sequel as well. Goldsman is a prolific writer, with his name on films including Batman & Robin and A Beautiful Mind, as well as countless television episodes from shows like Fringe and Titans.
Deadline reports that the deals are closed for Smith, Jordan, and Goldsman, but that a director is not yet attached.
The 2007 film was an adaptation of the 1954 Richard Matheson story, which followed a man living alone in a world of vampires–they’re explicitly vampires in the book, right down to garlic and sunlight aversion. The main character finds out at the end that he is the boogeyman to this new society of beings–not the other way around–he is the legend that parents warn their children about. Smith’s film originally had a similarly-themed ending that reportedly did not play well with test audiences; he realized that the beings, called hemocytes in the movie, have higher brain functions and that he’s been kidnapping and torturing them. In the theatrical ending, he finds a cure for the virus and dies a hero. With Smith apparently dying in the original, it’s unclear how he’ll appear in this film–whether it’s a prequel, a twist of the original ending, or something else.
I Am Legend grossed 256.4 million in the United States and $585 million worldwide. With Smith and Jordan both attached, this long-time-coming sequel could be a big success for Warner Bros.
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