Lord of the Flies Reboot Producer Says Adaptation Will Be Both “Refreshing” and “Scary”

William Golding’s 1954 novel Lord of the Flies is a significant piece of literature for a number of reasons, with its depiction of boys stranded on an island showcasing an all-too-real reflection of the breakdowns of a society. While the story has been brought to life for live-action movies previously, Call Me by Your Name director Luca Guadagnino is set to revive the concept, with Lindsey Anderson Beer set to produce. The producer recently noted how Guadagnino will be leaning into the more horrifying elements of the concept, while also injecting it with ideas that will resonate with contemporary viewers. 

“It leans so much into psychological horror and it’s so rich in character drama, as you would expect from somebody like him,” Anderson Beer detailed to Collider. “But it’s scary … It gives you so much unease reading it, and I think it taps into a more current version of it than we’ve seen before.”

Between the recently resolved writers’ strike and the ongoing actors’ strike, there’s no current plan in place for when the project can move forward, though Anderson Beer’s role as a producer has allowed her to remain involved in the project’s development. One of the last updates on the project was back in 2020, in which it was reported that A Monster Calls writer Patrick Ness would be developing the screenplay. Some reports of a new adaptation of the story had previously claimed it would focus on female characters, though Guadagnino’s approach will stick more closely to the source material.

“I think some people have tried to tackle that property in a way that doesn’t really resonate to now, and I think that the whole approach has been very fresh and refreshing,” the producer pointed out.

The various strikes that have been impacting the industry aren’t the only potential complications that could delay a new Lord of the Flies, as both Guadagnino and Anderson Beer’s busy schedules could also delay any development. Guadagnino has multiple movie and TV projects on the horizon, including a sequel to Call Me by Your Name, while Anderson Beer is attached to projects like new takes on Short Circuit and Sleepy Hollow, as well as having previously been involved in a live-action Bambi and a Star Trek 4, though she has admitted she had to part ways from those projects more recently.

Stay tuned for details on the new Lord of the Flies.

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