The Best Bigfoot Movie Ever Might Have Just Been Announced, And the Main Influence Is John Wick

The continued influence of the John Wick movies on modern cinema is no secret, but the action franchise serving as the inspiration for an upcoming Bigfoot movie is more than a little surprising. Almost immediately upon release in 2014, John Wick enraptured audiences with its brutal violence brought to life by Keanu Reeves’ stoic performance as the eponymous legendary hitman. The John Wick movies have since served as a template for many action thrillers, with high-octane kills and realism-heavy action set pieces becoming increasingly prevalent thanks to the franchise’s influence. While John Wick has inspired many movies, it will soon serve as the template for a surprising yet potentially exciting horror movie.

Wildman is a horror script that has been described as “John Wick but with Bigfoot”. Per The Hollywood Reporter, Wildman has now been acquired by Badlands, a 2024-founded specialized horror and genre film label created by the production company Thunder Road Films. Penned by Jacob Rainer and brought to Hollywood’s attention via a horror screenplay contest, Wildman’s logline explains that the film chronicles Bigfoot’s violent crusade to recover the body of his younger brother after he is killed by hunters. The upcoming horror movie certainly has a unique premise at its core, but its John Wick inspiration is equally as intriguing.

Why Wildman’s John Wick Inspiration Is Actually Incredibly Exciting

Of course, John Wick has already inspired several of the most rewatchable action movies of recent years, but Wildman seems set to be something very different. Where many John Wick-inspired movies embrace the gritty, violent realism intact, Wildman is eschewing it with its very premise. By making its protagonist the legendary cryptid Bigfoot, Wildman puts an interesting spin on the revenge-style action thrillers that have recently flooded Hollywood.

Of course, there are other reasons that Wildman is an exciting prospect. For starters, Badlands is itself a branch of Thunder Road Films, the studio whose recent success has come off the back of the John Wick franchise. With the oversight of the same executives behind the action movies that inspired it, Wildman seems all but certain to make effective use of its action-heavy influence. However, its horror slant is seemingly being given due consideration, making it feel as though it will be an excellent way to bridge the two genres with a movie whose premise is sure to attract audiences.

Despite being one of the best monsters of all time, Bigfoot has only a few movies. The saddest part about this is that they all typically fall into the comedy or family genres, with very few titles of note actually exploring the darker potential of a Bigfoot movie. However, using John Wick‘s violent and revenge-driven story as a launch pad, Wildman will hopefully deliver the sort of Bigfoot story that we don’t often get: a bloody, horrifying tale that paints its protagonist in a very different light from previous Bigfoot movies.

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