After a brief box office stumble with “The Northman,” director Robert Eggers had his most successful film yet with 2024’s “Nosferatu.” Once that movie was a huge success, Eggers quickly got his next film greenlit, which is another gothic horror tale.
“Werwulf” is set to be released on Christmas Day this year, and promises to be another hit for Eggers. Fortunately for him, he doesn’t have to wait until the movie comes out to get his next project off the ground. He has been pigeonholed as a horror director, but Eggers is looking to branch out and turn the most famous romantic story into a film.
Eggers Set to Adapt ‘Romeo and Juliet’
GettyAccording to The Hollywood Reporter, Eggers’ next project is an adaptation of William Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet.” The legendary romance is one of the most well-known tales in the world.
Everybody is at least familiar with the story of teenage romance and unrequited love. Eggers is known for his love of historical accuracy and period pieces. The film will certainly have that level of attention to detail.
There were previous rumors that he was tabbed to direct a remake of the 1986 film “Labyrinth” and an adaptation of Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol,” but this new development could mean those projects are on the back burner for now. THR noted that “Romeo and Juliet” is the next film Eggers plans to make.
“While numbers were not revealed, sources say the deal for the project is in the high-seventy millions, which will include filmmaker and talent fees as well as the budget for the production. Romeo and Juliet is intended to be Eggers’ next production,” Borys Kit wrote.
‘Romeo and Juliet’ Won’t Be in Olde English
With THR’s intial report, they stated that Eggers’ “Romeo and Juliet” film would inlcude Olde English dialect. That confused many people, as Shakespeare’s original story was written in modern English. This led to speculation that Eggers could be going for a radically different take.
However, that’s actually not the case. Kit had to take to social media to explain that the report that the film would be in “Olde English” was not accurate.
“Correction: Sources have confirmed to me that Eggers’ Romeo and Juliet will not be in Olde English but rather in Elizabethan English, aka early modern English,” Kit wrote on X.
With this news, it sounds like Eggers’ film could be a more straightforward adaptation. While the “Romeo and Juliet” story is so famous, it has been a very long time since there was a straight-up Hollywood production of the story that didn’t have some kind of twist. Even 1996’s “Romeo + Juliet” was a modern retelling of the story.
Knowing Eggers, he’s going to want to make a period-accurate version of the story. What will be interesting is whether he’ll try to inject some darker elements into the story or if he’ll keep it more romantic. Eggers may be known for his horror direction, but he’s also injected compelling romance into “The Northman” and “Nosferatu.” It’s also worth noting that “The Northman” is loosely inspired by Shakespeare’s “Hamlet.”
