Bryan Fuller to remake The Munsters for NBC

[Sawyer]

According to Fuller's twitter from a few weeks back, both the production designer and costume designer from Pushing Daisies are on board.

 

[Mogwai]

i hope they keep it set in los angeles and not some random town like "mystic falls" or "bon temps."

 

[Sawyer]

Deadline:

NBC’s ‘Munsters’ Reboot Rolled To June
By NELLIE ANDREEVA

After difficulties with casting, NBC has pushed production on its Munsters pilot to June. The project, a reboot of The Munsters titled Mocking Bird Lane, was written by Bryan Fuller, with Bryan Singer attached to direct. It joins another pilot with an early order, CBS’ Jon Favreau comedy Tweaked, which also was recently rolled to after the upfronts because of casting difficulties.

Damn.

 

[Mogwai]

I'm curious about what they consider "difficulties."

 

[Shifty]

Well it could mean a drama may have a chance for the fall. Either a new one or Parenthood sticks around. NBC could maybe save it for October for Halloween just like Grimm was kept back until late October and AMC premiering The Walking Dead on the 31st.

Fox pushed the filming of Touch's pilot to June last year because Sutherland wasn't available for March/April - it basically signified that it would be picked up for midseason.

 

[Mogwai]

Also, I feel the casting could make or break this show. They need the perfect actors for the roles.

 

[Sawyer]

TV Line:

Scoop: NBC's Munsters Reboot Casts Eddie Izzard as Grandpa!

NBC’s Munsters reboot has adopted its first family member: Eddie Izzard!

Sources confirm to TVLine that the former Riches patriarch is nearing a deal to play Grandpa in the high profile pilot, which is now being called Mockingbird Lane.

The role was originated by Al Lewis in classic ’60s version.

The project, which was originally slated to go into production this month but got pushed back until early summer due to casting issues, is being stewarded by Pushing Daisies creator Bryan Fuller and X-Men auteur Bryan Singer. Whereas the original was a comedy, the remake is being billed by NBC as a “visually spectacular one hour drama.”

Thoughts? I know you have ‘em, so proceed to the comments at once!

He's no Malcolm McDowell, but I'm pleased.

 

[Matt Mortem]

I'm a huge HUGE Eddie Izzard fan. This is good news.

 

[Sawyer]

Given that they cited casting as one of the reasons for this getting pushed to June, I'm hoping that this first piece of the puzzle really gets the ball rolling and we get the other four cast soon.

 

[Matt Mortem]

I'm very interested to know who they get to play Herman Munster.

 

[Project862006]

I'm very interested to know who they get to play Herman Munster.

should get Brad Garrett

 

[Sawyer]

If they were going for a flat out recreation of the original series, he'd be the go-to guy.

Fuller isn't quite going in that direction.

 

[Matt Mortem]

Yeah, Izzard as Grandpa tells me that this is gonna be even more different than the original than I thought. I imagine Herman isn't gonna be anything like the Herman we know.

 

[Shifty]

He was fantastic in The Riches, hated to see that show the way it did with the airing on different night and having a shortened season because of the writer's strike. With him added, I'm certainly interested in what happens with the rest of the casting.

 

[Mogwai]

He was in The United States of Tara, right?

 

[DrDoom]

I just want to see some concept art or costume designs. Interested to see an updated version of all the characters, especially Lilly

 

[Sawyer]

Deadline:

Charity Wakefield To Play Marilyn In NBC’s ‘Munsters’ Reboot ‘Mockingbird Lane’
By NELLIE ANDREEVA

EXCLUSIVE: British actress Charity Wakefield is set to co-star opposite Eddie Izzard in NBC’s Munsters reboot Mockingbird Lane. The pilot, written by Bryan Fuller and to be directed by Bryan Singer, is described as a reinvention of the 1960s sitcom about a family of “monsters” – vampires, werewolves and Frankenstein and their “plain” cousin (Wakefield) — with striking visuals in the vein of Fuller’s ABC dramedy Pushing Daisies. Wakefield will play Marilyn, Lily’s beautiful niece and the only “normal” Munster (which makes her rather abnormal). Saved from being devoured by her own mother as an infant, she lives with the Munsters but has not inherited any of their special attributes. A college student who believes in good manners and congeniality toward the new neighbors, she regularly clashes with Grandpa (Izzard), but she gets along well with Aunt Lily and Uncle Herman, as well as with her young cousin Eddie. The role of Marilyn was played by Pat Priest in the original series.

This marks the second U.S. gig for Wakefield following her starring role on another NBC pilot, 2010′s David E. Kelley dramedy Legally Mad. Well known for her stage work in London, Wakefield is probably best known to American audiences for her starring role on the BBC miniseries Sense And Sensibility, which aired on PBS. Wakefield, repped by Management 360 and UK’s United Agents, will segue to Mockingbird Lane after finishing the ITV mini Leaving, now filming in London. Additionally, she has received an offer to play Bradley Cooper’s sister Agatha in the Susanna Bier-directed feature Serena, which also stars Jennifer Lawrence.

Never heard of her. Hope she's good.

 

[Mogwai]

Charity Wakefield

 

[Crockett]

From the latest EW issue there's a concept art on Mockingbird Lane, you could see Grandpa and Lily Munster has an updated look, which it's fitting considering it's a reboot, curious to see the new take on the rest of the characters.

 

[chaseter]

I think this is going to fail miserably.

 

[TheComicbookKid]

I think it will be good but no one will watch it. Just like every other Fuller show.

 

[Sawyer]

I can't wait for people to start getting their herp and derp on about the new wardrobe. Because, you know, of course Eddie Izzard should go around dressed as Count Dracula every week.

I think it looks great.

 

[Siby]

I don't know why they are "remaking" the original but having nothing to do with the original concept. Especially since this is such a departure from the beloved classic series and no matter how good the new one might be people will compare it to the original series and tune out.

They should just make a new show with no ties to the original show and see how it does. I for one absolutely hate everything about this remake.

 

[Sawyer]

Bryan Fuller talks 'Munsters' reboot 'Mockingbird Lane' -- EXCLUSIVE PHOTO
by James Hibberd

Bryan Fuller’s Munsters reboot is one of the most anticipated projects in the TV development pipeline and has inspired plenty of reader curiosity: How will the Pushing Daisies creator turn the classic sitcom about a monster family into a modern-day NBC dramedy? Why did the show’s title change to Mockingbird Lane? How dark, how funny, and how odd, exactly, will the show be?

Below, Fuller gives his first interview about the project, and offers a peek at the Munster mansion (photo on the second page). If all goes according to plan, Fuller says Mockingbird Lane won’t simply chronicle the familiar Munster family of Frankenstein’s monster, vampire, and a werewolf boy, but will enjoy a monster upgrade — adding other classic creatures from the Universal library.

“We want this show to be an American Harry Potter,” Fuller says. “To have that sense of a magical world that you get to go to with your family and find stories told in a fantastical way that are instantly relatable. It’s an American Horror Story that the whole family can watch.”

ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: How did you first become involved with this project?
BRYAN FULLER: It started when I was at the Tim Burton exhibit in New York and he had all these monster family portraits. And I thought there should be a show about a family of monsters. But any show about a family of monsters is going to be calling back to the original show about a family of monsters. We are reinventing The Munsters because if we didn’t everybody would just say, “You’re ripping off the Munsters!” So why not just make it official?

What excited you about the idea?
I always loved the original and was much more a Munsters child than an Addams Family child. The Munsters were the more relatable family. The Addams family looked normal but they acted weird and were sort of mal-socialized in a way. The Munsters were a more functional, sane family unit, they just looked different. [The shows] were almost inverses of the same idea. Obviously, Addams came first, then The Munsters took advantage of the Universal monsters and what they brought to the table. What excited me was to tell this story — and it’s going to sound strange in regards to this property — in a grounded, more realistic way.

And that tonal focus is why you changed the title?
The script is such a dramatic departure from the tone and style of the original show. If we continued to call the show The Munsters, people are just going to to think we’re doing The Munsters. We’re doing a reinvention and re-imagination of this property. I love the Universal monsters. I love The Creature from the Black Lagoon, The Invisible Man, The Wolfman, Phantom of the Opera, The Mummy. There’s so many great characters we can run through this metaphor of family storytelling that it just felt it was ripe to do as a one-hour dramedy. Having all those elements to play with, the toy box is really, really full.

So assuming Universal clears the rights to more creatures, you’ll add the other monsters into the show?
Absolutely. There’s some great stories going forward in the series. Any story you can tell on Parenthood we can run through a Universal monster prism and tell it in a very twisted, off-kilter way. What I love about the pilot story is it’s about a family who loves each other and they have a child [Eddie, the werewolf] with a disability and they’re trying to craft a path for that child so he can have a happy life — they just happen to be monsters. And, unlike in the original, we’re going to see our monsters do monstrous things.

The pilot production was pushed back at one point, what changed?
There wasn’t a huge amount changed. The primary issue was finding the right cast. I tend to write in a very tricky tone. It’s hard to find actors who are agile enough to navigate the turns. There’s mouthfuls of dialog. Fortunately, we went to Eddie Izzard as Grandpa very early in the process. He’s a great piece of casting for us.

FULLER: We wanted [the mansion] to have feeling of the original. We wanted a house in the neighborhood that children would walk past faster than other houses.

And the costumes?
We’re not doing bolts in the neck and Bela Lugosi. It’s almost the Real Housewives of Transylvania. These are a blinged-out representation of what monsters would be doing if they lived in our society today. How they would look, how they would interact. Our wardrobe is heavily influenced by Alexander McQueen and his use of animal textures. For instance, with [the vampire] Lily, all of her wardrobe comes from nature. The first time we see her this nest of spiders weaves her dress on her body as she’s standing there. We’ll see ravens come in and assemble her blouse out of their feathers. We won’t see animal skins because the animals are donating as opposed to dying for it. She has domain over nature and nature has a fantastic esthetic.

You’re also adapting another remake, NBC’s upcoming series take on the Hannibal Lecter films.
I’m personally, as an audience member, not afraid of remakes. I’m afraid of bad remakes, which is unfortunately more commonly the case. Which is why I think people get up in arms when they see a remake idea — “Oh, they’re remaking something that’s been done before, what hackery, there’s no original thoughts in Hollywood.” But there’s a great quote that no art exists without the art before it. We’re doing our work to make our versions distinct and respect their source material. One of the things we did so well in the first season of Heroes is we delivered on each of those [superhero] metaphors. When you come to The Munsters and have Herman — who’s essentially a zombie in a constant state of decay — and he’s married to a woman who doesn’t age, there’s something very poignant there. These stories will surprise audiences.

Kinda sad that he dodged anything about Hannibal.

 

[chaseter]

Remember that vampire and werewolf show on ABC? No.

I think it would have had a chance as a comedy like the original but I think this smells like death...pun intended. If this is a drama with comedic elements then it's doomed. If it was like Modern Family with a monster twist, aka the original show, then IMO it could work. Heck, they could have even done a Parks or Office hidden camera style show with the POV being Marilyn aka the audience.