Daniela Melchior joins Paul Rudd & Jack Black in new Anaconda movie

From Ratcatcher to Anacondacatcher? Deadline reports that Daniela Melchior is set to join Paul Rudd and Jack Black in the new Anaconda movie in development at Sony Pictures. The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent director Tom Gormican is set to direct the project as well as co-write the script with Kevin Ettin. The project has apparently been in the works since early 2023, going through a lot of rewrites as they try to strike the correct tone.

It’s not known who Melchior will play in the Anaconda movie, but the project won’t be a remake of the ’90s classic that starred Jennifer Lopez, Ice Cube, and Jon Voight. According to sources, “the new story involves a group of friends facing mid-life crises who are remaking their favorite movie from their youth. They head to the rainforest only to find themselves into a fight for their lives against natural disasters, giant snakes and violent criminals.” As for who Black and Rudd will play in the Anaconda movie, details are sparse, but previous sources have mentioned two characters: a director stuck in his job as a wedding videographer and an actor who once did a stint on a police procedural who now sees his Hollywood dreams slipping away. Rudd was actually mentioned with this project over a year ago when there were rumblings that he would star alongside Pedro Pascal.

The original Anaconda movie spawned a handful of sequels, including Anacondas: The Hunt for the Blood Orchid, Anaconda 3: Offspring, Anacondas: Trial of Blood, and Lake Placid vs. Anaconda. There was also a Chinese remake released earlier this year, which centered around a group of circus performers pitting against a giant snake. “A group of circus performers, on their way to what they think is a new performance location, become stranded in a lush rainforest after the boat they were on, and the captain leading the way, are eaten and destroyed by an anaconda with a special red marking,” reads a description. “They cross paths with a deadly poacher who is hunting the anaconda, who realises that he might now have enough bait to catch him. But being circus performers, they have a few survival tricks up their sleeves.“

Daniela Melchior was last seen starring alongside Jake Gyllenhaal in the Road House remake on Prime Video. A sequel is already in the works.