Doctor Jekyll Reimagining Casts Eddie Izzard to Star

A new take on the novella The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde is moving forward with Eddie Izzard having been tapped to star in the reimagining as Nina Jekyll, per Variety. The new film, Doctor Jekyll, comes from director Joe Stephenson (Chicken, McKellen: Playing the Party) and from a script by Dan Kelly-Mulhern. Thanks to the success of 2020's The Invisible Man and the ways in which it reimagined concepts that have been explored countless times, this new take on the material sounds to be exploring a similarly fresh approach to the material as opposed to merely being the latest in a long string of adaptations. 

The outlet claims the film "follows the reclusive Nina Jekyll finding friendship with her newly hired help, Rob, played by emerging actor Scott Chambers (Chicken) who must work together to prevent Hyde from destroying her life."

"I am very excited to be playing the role of Nina Jekyll in this new feature film and it's wonderful to be able to reimagine this classic story in a modern way," Izzard shared in a statement.

Stephenson continued, "I'm thrilled that Eddie is joining us as my Nina Jekyll. With her being the extraordinary and versatile actress she is, playing against Scott's natural talent to make us believe in the good in people, I can't wait to bring this suspenseful take on the iconic classic to life."

There are a number of well-known interpretations of the source material, with the 1913 adaptation cementing the character in the roster of iconic Universal Monsters. The character was also slated to be part of Universal Pictures' Dark Universe series of reboots, which kicked off with The Mummy in 2017.

A number of performers were announced to be taking the mantle of iconic characters back then, which included Russell Crowe playing Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Crowe debuted as the figure in The Mummy as a member of the Prodigium organization, which would have seemingly linked together all of the famous characters. Despite the titular Mummy being the focus of that outing, fans did catch a glimpse of the monstrous Mr. Hyde, planting the seed for a future film.

Sadly, with The Mummy's disappointing financial and critical reception, future films in the Dark Universe were either delayed indefinitely or scrapped, with this film seemingly serving as a standalone adventure.

Stay tuned for details on Doctor Jekyll.

Are you looking forward to the project? Let us know in the comments below or contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter to talk all things horror and Star Wars.