Welsh-born actor Luke Evans has been slowly building to a major breakout, starring in a number of modest pics, including THE THREE MUSKETEERS, THE RAVEN, and IMMORTALS. This summer he’ll star as the villain in FAST AND FURIOUS 6 and later this year as Bard the Bowman in Peter Jackson‘s THE HOBBIT: THE DESOLATION OF SMAUG. By year’s end, with any luck, Evans will have upped his stock yet again, which makes his new venture with Universal such a tasty prospect.
Evans is set to don the cape and fangs of Universal’s most famous monster, Dracula, in DRACULA YEAR ZERO, an origin tale of the famed creature of the night. Rather than adapting Bram Stoker‘s original novel, as was already done brilliantly with Francis Ford Coppola’s BRAM STOKER’S DRACULA, the studio is creating an updated take on the character which goes like this:
The script tells of a young prince who, when the lives of his wife and child are put in danger by a bloodthirsty sultan, risks his soul to save them, and in the process becomes the first vampire.
Commercial helmer Gary Shore will make his feature directorial debut with DRACULA YEAR ZERO. It’s the first time Evans will topline a pic, which is a nice step forward for the gravelly-voiced actor. Although I’m not excited to see another Dracula tale, the presence of Evans is a welcome addition and adds some weight to an otherwise “meh” idea. I’m willing to give the benefit of the doubt with his involvement as I think he’s got tremendous presence. Ultimately, it’s nice to see some of the harder working actors out there getting an opportunity to push their careers forward.
FAST AND FURIOUS 6 is set for release on May 24, 2013, while THE HOBBIT: THE DESOLATION OF SMAUG drops on December 13, 2013. DRACULA YEAR ZERO is prepping to begin shooting later this year with a release date to be determined.