Ever wonder why so many sequels are just “more of the same?” Well, I would bet that it is not because the creative types don’t have new ideas so much as it is studio bean counters who want to play things safe to insure a sequel brings in the same kind of pay the original film did.

Case in point – the sequel currently in development to last spring’s teens with superpowers film Chronicle.

Max Landis, the writer of the first film, has been working hard on the script for the followup. But it seems that he has been encountering some resistance from the studio. The Playlist caught up with Max’s father, John Landis (Animal House, The Blues Brothers, An American Werewolf In London), who reported -

[Max] wrote a sequel and it’s amazing… and the studio read it and said, ‘We want ‘Chronicle’ again!’ And he said, ‘No, this is the sequel, it’s the evolution, and they said ‘No, we want that movie again!’ So it’s difficult, we’re dealing with a difficult business.’

This is a none-too-surprising turn of events considering that studios are pretty much run by business school graduates who rely on past consumer habits in their decision making rather than taking a chance on something new.

Now granted, Chronicle was something of a risk for the studio, but with a budget of $12 million it was a small gamble that paid off big in the amount of $126 million at the box office. One would think that that kind of return would earn Landis and director Josh Trank some leeway as to what they do with a sequel. But it seems that the studio is more interested in playing it safe and protecting their investment rather than trusting that the audience will continue to follow the filmmakers as they move on to the next phase of the story they want to tell. Time will tell who wins this particular battle in the continuing war between art and commerce. I just hope that it isn’t the audience who loses.

Fox’s untitled Frankenstein project is moving as the studio has entered into talks with director Paul McGuigan to helm their in-development project based on Mary Shelley’s classic horror novel.

The script for the proposed film is by Chronicle writer Max Landis.

Although Fox has been working on their Frankenstein project for a while, the studio has apparently recently made the film a priority, looking to beat the other Frankenstein related projects in development into theaters. Last fall, Shawn Levy had expressed interest but a solid commitment to the project never materialized.

Although he has the films Lucky Number Slevin and Push to his credit, NcGuigan’s most recent work was three feature-length episodes of the BBC’s popular Sherlock series starring Benedict Cumberbatch.

Via Hollywood Reporter.

The success of the found footage film Chronicle has already netted its director Josh Track the job of directing the Sony Pictures’ comic book adaption Venom. Now Chronicle‘s writer is picking up a new job – scripting Chronicle 2.

Max Landis has been hired by Twentieth Century Fox to script a follow up to the film that has already earned $105 million at the box office against its $12 million budget. Landis is also working on a treatment for a new version of Mary Shelly’s classic Frankenstein for the studio for Jay Levy to direct.

As to where the sequel could go storywise, the first film offers a hint at the end with one of three teenagers with amazing telekinetic powers vows to find out the origin of the strange alien artifact that gave them their powers.

Via Deadline.

1. Chronicle (FOX, 2,907 Theaters, 83 Minutes, Rated PG-13): Here a mix of two things I bet you’d never seen together, a superhero film and a faux-documentary/found footage type of film.

The story, co-written by Max Landis, son of John, deals with four teenagers who develop superpowers. As their powers grow and they become stronger, they must decide what to do with them. Judging from the trailer I’ve seen, some decide to become total douche bags.

As far as I know, this is not adapted from any comic book. Not that similar themes haven’t been explored in that medium before. Absolute power corrupting absolutely is a well-worn theme in comics. Maybe this film will add something new.

2. The Woman In Black (CBS Films, 2,855 Theaters, 95 Minutes, Rated PG-13): Transitioning out of a immensely popular genre role is tough. It’s even harder if it’s a role you have been playing almost exclusively since you were 12. But that is what Daniel Radcliffe is going to begin this week as he stars in his first post-Harry Potter film.

And as a vehicle for the start of the rest of his cinematic life, he might have made a wise choice. He plays a lawyer named Arthur Kipps who comes to a remote town to settle an estate. While there, he finds the town terrified of a woman wearing a black dress, whose presence means a child will soon die. Kipps is forced to solve the mystery of the woman in black before his own child becomes a victim of the curse.

The supernatural theme and PG-13 rating might entice the Potter fanbase in. And the film was produced by Hammer Films, a name that any horror fans would tell you adds luster to the film. Let’s see if that’s enough to encourage audience to stop seeing Radcliffe only as Harry.

3. Big Miracle (Universal, 2,128 Theaters, 107 Minutes, Rated PG): This film is based on a true story dating way back to the year of 1988. I’m going to have a moment of silence for that year, my junior year in high school, being ancient history.

A family of whales get trapped under miles of ice in the northern most point of Alaska, with only a small opening for them to come up and breathe through. As the temperatures get colder, that opening get smaller as more of the water freezes. The story becomes a global sensation as a race against time ensues to save the whales’ lives.

Anyone alive during this time probably knows how the story ends (Here’s a hint: Bring tissues with you to the theater), but if you are a fan of these kinds of films, it might be an enjoyable, if somewhat bittersweet, experience for you and your family.

Shawn Levy has signed on to direct Twentieth Century Fox’s planned retelling of the Frankenstein story.

Variety’s Showblitz is reporting that the director has just signed on to direct the project that the studio is developing. Max Landis is currently writing a treatment for the film.

Unclear, however, is Levy’s status in relation to Fox’s planned remake of Fantastic Voyage. Last month, we told you that Levy and the studio were not seeing eye-to-eye on matters of casting for the film and that if they couldn’t come to an agreement he would leave the project. The Frankenstein film was one potential replacement job that Levy had been considering.

Levy beat out several other high profile directors for this film including Paul Greengrass, who had also been briefly attached to Fantastic Voyage, and David Yates for the gig.