While we might not have gotten Universal Studio’s “Dark Universe” like we were promised oh-so many years ago, it looks like the studio isn’t letting their monster-filled dreams (nightmares?) die yet. Following their film debut flop, Universal has decided to pivot in a new direction to carry on the legacy of their classic, creepy creatures: video games.
Earlier today, Universal Pictures revealed the first trailer for their upcoming animated four-episode miniseries We Will Be Monsters, a creep-filled and creative collaboration between the studio and Fortnite developer Epic Games (via The Hollywood Reporter). The series follows the Bride of Frankenstein as she embarks on “a globe-trotting quest to rescue fellow Monsters,” and offers a more modern and diverse depiction of Universal’s classic monsters, completely reimagining character’s such as Frankenstein’s Monster, Dracula, and the Mummy while also taking viewers on a trip to places like Hong Kong, Morocco, Los Angeles and Lagos, Nigeria.
However, the real kicker is that as part of the partnership, each one of the newly designed characters in the show will also be available for gamers to purchase as Fortnite skins following the premiere of the show on October 28 within the game. The first episode is slated to be a part of Fortnite‘s Shortnitemares Festival, and re-envisions the Bride of Frankenstein and Dracula. Both the content and release dates of episodes three through four have yet to be announced.
Universal Films Entertainment Group president Abhijay Prakash says We Will Be Monsters is the film studio’s attempt at “evolving and building [the] IP and content for different formats,” and with the growing popularity of video games (and staying power of Fortnite), it’s easy to see why they’re going that route. At the helm of the project is Rick Famuyiwa, the same director behind several episodes of Disney+’s The Mandalorian, and voicing the various monsters are Chemon Theys (the Bride), current Hamilton actor Victory Ndukwe (Frankenstein’s Monster), and Emmy Saheki (the Mummy). The series’ hits Fortnite‘s Shortnitemares Festival on October 28.