Last month brought some wild news for horror fans, as it was reported that cult favorite director Rob Zombie was helming a reboot of The Munsters for Universal. The movie was said to be everything you’d expect from the 3 From Hell filmmaker – a hard R-rated reimagining of the classic 1966 sitcom about a family of monsters. Zombie’s long-time leading lady and wife Sheri Moon Zombie is set to play vampire matriarch Lily Munster, with Jeff Daniel Phillips as her Frankenstein-esque husband Herman.
Bloody Disgusting has now followed up on the earlier news with the claim that Universal intends to drop The Munsters on streaming the very same day it hits theaters. The studio is said to have drawn inspiration from what Warner Bros. is doing with its HBO Max simultaneous release strategy, and so will likewise make Zombie’s reboot available on Peacock as it enters cinemas. We don’t know when it could be on its way to our screens, but filming is due to begin this May in Budapest.
We previously heard about some additional casting and character details and know that Dan Roebuck, Richard Brake and Jorge Garcia are confirmed to be in the pic, and they’ll be playing Grandpa Munster and a pair of new creations – mad scientist Dr. Wolfgang and his minion Floop – respectively. Meanwhile, Cassandra “Elvira” Peterson’s role is as the Munster’s real estate agent, who sells them their iconic Mockingbird Lane home.
Zombie’s fans will know that he’s a crazed Munsters fan, having referenced the original show in his music career and contributed a commentary track to the Blu-Ray release of 1966’s Munster, Go Home. He might seem like a left field choice to relaunch the franchise for the 2020s, but it’s clear that he’s the most passionate person for the job.
Ahead of the R-rated reboot getting here, all 70 episodes of The Munsters can be streamed on Peacock now.