Richard Matheson’s 1957 novel I Am Legend has remained one of the greatest modern horror and sci-fi novels since its publication. It’s spawned a variety of adaptations, each of which are varied in their faithfulness to the source material, including the 1964 movie The Last Man on Earth, 1971 movie The Omega Man, and most recently the 2007 Will Smith vehicle I Am Legend. Now it appears a new project based on I Am Legend is being developed by Warner Bros.
Unfortunately, at this time, there aren’t many other details available. The project was only prematurely revealed in a lawsuit between Village Roadshow and Warner Bros. As such, it’s not even clear if the project is intended to be another film adaptation or some type of series for HBO Max or television.
Here’s how Bloody-Disgusting, via THR, explained the lawsuit:
“It claims that the major studio is shutting it out from being a co-owner and financial partner on dozens of projects that are being developed based on movies they share the rights to in order to boost the value of its parent company’s streamer HBO Max.”
As a result, these projects have been revealed. While some of these are quite surprising, and others not so much, it’s the fact they’re developing a new project based on I Am Legend that should have fans interested. The property really hasn’t had any movement since the release of the 2007 film, which was incredibly successful at the time. With so many years having passed, it’ll be interesting to see what kind of angle Warner Bros has for I Am Legend at this point in time.
While it would be neat to see a new tie-in made to connect with the 2007 film, an adaptation closer to the novel would also be welcomed. Every adaptation thus far has altered elements from the novel, and for such an iconic story which also inspired films like Night of the Living Dead, it would be great to see something faithful produced. As such, fans can stay tuned to ScreenGeek for updates on this project as we have them.