Every studio is looking to build their own Marvel-style shared universe, even when it doesn't seem like that good of an idea. Sony is doing it with its Spider-Man franchise, 20th Century Fox has the X-men, and Universal recently revealed their plans to do the same with their revamped stable of classic monster movies. But that kind of left the question open where Dracula Untold, which has been developing longer than the vampire has been alive it seems, would fit into that equation. Well now we know, as producer Alissa Phillips confirmed to HeyUGuys it is the official start of their new monsterverse.
The film opens next week with Luke Evans in the starring role, and basically it's a Batman Begins-style origin story telling how Prince Vlad became a vampire to save his people from destruction. It's partly based on historical fact but the giant plumes of vampiric power seen in the trailer are definitely not in Vlad the Impaler's Wikipedia entry. The bigger problem may be that the movie is getting ripped in early reviews, and hopefully this won't be a failed franchise-starter the way Green Lantern was for Warner Bros.
So if Dracula Untold was filming before this new plan by Universal was put into effect, how can it work as a tie-in movie? Badass Digest may have the answer....
“A few months ago sources told me that Universal did some reshoots on Dracula Untold in order to allow it to fit into the larger Monsterverse, and word from junketeers who have seen early screenings backs this up. I don't know what they have included in the film, but they have put some elements in that will allow the studio to tie this movie into the new initiative.”
Next on the monster list for Universal is Alex Kurtzman and Chris Morgan's The Mummy, which was originally going to be the start of the shared universe. So a post-credits scene of Drac and Mum sharing some shwarma?
