Four years ago, it was announced that Universal was moving forward with a remake of their 1996 teen stalker thriller Fear (watch it HERE), which starred Mark Wahlberg and Reese Witherspoon. Fear producer Brian Grazer was back to produce the new version, which got far enough that Straight Outta Compton‘s Jonathan Herman was writing the screenplay and Amandla Stenberg (Bodies Bodies Bodies) was cast in the lead role. Then it fell apart… But there’s still life in Fear. Variety has broken the news that a series inspired by the film is now in development at the Peacock streaming service, coming our way from Universal Television.
Jessica Goldberg, creator of the Hulu series The Path, is writing and executive producing this new take on Fear, which has the following synopsis:
This modern series reinvention finds two young lovers in a psychological game of cat and mouse—but who’s the cat, and who’s the mouse? When David and Nicole first meet in Seattle, it feels like an epic, once-in-a-lifetime romance – but soon it becomes clear that the seemingly perfect couple is anything but. Told from conflicting points of view, the series wrestles with personal demons, hidden agendas and reframes the “he said she said” convention into a twist-filled suspense story about toxic relationships.
Grazer is also executive producing the series, alongside Ron Howard, Lilly Burns, and Kristen Zolner, for Imagine Television.
It’s kind of surprising that Universal has been so determined to bring a new version of Fear into the world, but the ’96 film (which was directed by James Foley from a screenplay by Christopher Crowe) does have a solid following. Arrow in the Head founder John Fallon is a fan, and featured the film in his Arrow Recommends series.
Are you looking forward to seeing a Fear series on Peacock? Share your thoughts on this one by leaving a comment below.