It looks like Little Red will be coming to the big screen in a dark way, according to Variety’s report that Leonardo DiCaprio’s Appain Way will partner with Orphan screenwriter David Leslie Johnson for a “Gothic reimagining” of the classic fairy tale. We wonder if they’ll be using our horror-fashion tips.
Though there’s no word yet on exactly how dark this new take will go, given that Johnson’s sole writing credit is a horror flick, we feel pretty safe in saying this won’t be one for the kiddies. While the Grimm Brothers made the happy-ending version of the story (complete with a drowned wolf) ubiquitous, many portrayals — from oral versions in the Middle Ages to Margaret Atwood’s blood-cloaked Little Red — have a much more gruesome take on the plot, with everything from werewolves to our heroine’s death at the hands of the wolf.
What we do know is that the movie isn’t planned to be a vehicle for Mr. DiCaprio, though having his name in the credits might not be a bad idea. Goth is in at the moment, most notably with the Twilight series bringing vampires and werewolves back into fashion (which, some suggest may cause our big bad wolf to become a werewolf himself for the script).
Taking such liberties could prove a good thing, given the limited success of the most recent “dark” take on fairy tales, 2005’s Matt Damon/Heath Ledger bomb The Brother’s Grimm. We’re just keeping our fingers crossed that Johnson can resist the urge to write another “surprise” ending.