Cryptozoologists: The Movie
Posted by: Craig Woolheater on March 9th, 2007
Hot on the heels of the announcement of Nick Redfern’s crypto movie deal, comes the following news, again reported by Variety.
New Line nabs creature feature
‘Night’ lights fire under Cryptozoologists
New Line has purchased David Gilcreast’s comedy spec script Cryptozoologists and set it up with ContraFilm’s Beau Flynn and Tripp Vinson.
Mini-major beat out bids from several other studios for the project. Story follows scientists who track mythical creatures such as Bigfoot and the Loch Ness Monster and have to deal with the sudden appearance of the creatures in San Francisco.
The bidding, conducted by Endeavor, closed Thursday. Script generated heat partly due to the impressive performance of Fox’s “Night at the Museum,” which has grossed more than $500 million worldwide.
Nine Yards, which manages Gilcreast, will exec produce. The scribe previously penned “Smooth Operator” for Warner Bros.
ContraFilm exec Lisa Zambri brought the project in to New Line-based ContraFilm, which produced “The Number 23” and “The Guardian.”Dave McNary
Variety
Monika Bartyzel of cinematical had this to say about the news.
The Loch Ness Monster and Bigfoot Take San Francisco!
It’s about time that Nessie got some play. By Nessie, I mean the Loch Ness Monster. As a kid, I had a stuffed animal, figurines, books and everything my Scottish grandmother could find. I ate it up like candy. The story intrigued me, and the blurry, black and white pictures were creepy enough to make sounds in the night a little scarier. Just yesterday, Erik Davis posted that Loch Ness would be visited by Jon Heder and his upcoming movie: Three Men Seeking Monsters: Six Weeks in Pursuit of Werewolves, Lake Monsters, Giant Cats, Ghostly Devil Dogs, and Ape-Men. Just a day later, we’ve got word of a second monster feature.
Variety has reported that New Line has nabbed the rights to a comedy script penned by David Gilcreast, who also penned the upcoming Smooth Operator for Warner Brothers. The film, which is called Cryptozoologists, details a group of scientists who track the mythological creatures we all wonder about — such as the Loch Ness Monster and Bigfoot. The twist in this comedy is that the creatures make a sudden appearance in San Francisco. If this is done right, I could see a cheesy monster picture of campy, Bubba Ho-Tep proportions. Nessie popping her head up from the Bay, Bigfoot scaling Alcatraz… Hopefully the film can be half as good as my campy daydreams about it will be.Monika Bartyzel
cinematical
San Francisco they say. Hmmmm, I wonder if any local cryptozoologists that we know will be dramatized in the film?
Co-founder of Cryptomundo in 2005.
I have appeared in or contributed to the following TV programs, documentaries and films:
OLN's Mysterious Encounters: "Caddo Critter", Southern Fried Bigfoot, Travel Channel's Weird Travels: "Bigfoot", History Channel's MonsterQuest: "Swamp Stalker", The Wild Man of the Navidad, Destination America's Monsters and Mysteries in America: Texas Terror - Lake Worth Monster, Animal Planet's Finding Bigfoot: Return to Boggy Creek and Beast of the Bayou.
I dislike the “mythological” comment, but otherwise this might be a funny movie.
I just hope the movie focuses more on the comedy aspect rather than trying to make the creatures scary. All these horror movies about our favorites are a real snooze, I’d welcome a new take.
Bubba Ho-tep was far from cheesy or campy! It was a poignant movie about a man coming to terms with his own mortality and the choices he’s made in his life. It succeeded because it didn’t take itself seriously as a movie. Critics! Ha!
Cryptozoologists will likely be done a la Night at the Museum.