Chris Evans Up To Star In Greg Berlanti’s Little Shop Of Horrors

Though he became a household name for playing the Star-Spangled Man in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Chris Evans is enjoying a bit of a heel turn after his time as Captain America has come to an end. After his turn as the wicked Ransom Drysdale in Knives Out, The Hollywood Reporter brings word that Evans is in talks to play the abusive Orin Scrivello, aka “The Dentist,” in the new remake of Little Shop of Horrors. The sadistic character was originally played by Steve Martin in the 1986 feature film directed by Frank Oz.

The cast for the film is still coming together but if those that are in talks sign on it will be a stacked musical movie. It was previously reported that Kingsman and Rocketman star Taron Egerton is in talks to appear in the film as Seymour Krelborn (previously played by Rick Moranis in the 1986 feature adaptation of the musical) with Black Widow and Jojo Rabbit star Scarlett Johansson up for the part of Audrey, Seymour’s love interest and the namesake for the musical’s carnivorous plant. The trade confirms that the two remain in talks for the film and that Emmy and Tony Award-winning Pose star Billy Porter has signed on to voice the ever hungry Audrey II in the film.

This new version of Little Shop of Horrors was first announced in 2016 where it was revealed that Greg Berlanti was set to direct the reboot based on a script from Matthew Robinson for Warner Bros. Updates on the project have started to become more regular since it was revealed that the film had been named one of the recipients of California’s Film & Television Tax Credit Program for the fiscal year of 2019-2020. As a result, the studio will likely be pushing for it to begin production soon so they can capitalize on these credits, saving them millions of dollars in the end.

Little Shop of Horrors has a very unique history on the big screen and elsewhere. The film first began as a movie (sans musical numbers) in 1960 from legendary filmmaker Roger Corman. Up until the musical it was only notable for being one of Jack Nicholson’s early movies. In 1982 the stage musical opened Off-Broadway to critical acclaim and was adapted in 1986 for the big screen with Frank Oz directing. Since then it has been revisited on the stage in many forms and even became the basis for short-lived animated series in the early 1990s.