Felipe Vargas no longer attached to direct Leprechaun reimagining

Back in June of 2023, it was announced that Lionsgate had given the greenlight to a new film in the Leprechaun franchise – a project described as a “reimagining,” with Felipe Vargas, director of the award-winning short film Milk Teeth, on board to direct. Nine months later, Vargas said he was hoping to do something gory, sexy, crazy, and elevated with the property… But it wasn’t to be. Our friends at Bloody Disgusting have learned that Vargas is no longer attached to direct the film.

Back in 2024, Vargas told Splattercast, “I’m so honored to be on that project. It’s such a cool franchise. To me what makes the franchise so special is that it really is limitless. It doesn’t need to be grounded. It can just be gory, sexy, crazy. … I would love for it to be scary as hell and also hilarious. I think we’re going back to a lot of the roots of Leprechaun in a lot of different ways, which I’m really excited about. But I think you also want to bring on a new audience. So it’s a really tricky one to figure out.” He said he wanted to give the film an “elevated vibe” and that he thinks practical effects are very important for the project.

Mike Van Waes, who wrote the novel Peeves and has worked on the upcoming live-action Lilo & Stitch movie, has written the screenplay for the new Leprechaun. Plot details are being kept under wraps. 

Roy Lee, whose producing credits include Barbarian and the recent It films, is producing the new Leprechaun through his company Vertigo Entertainment, alongside the company’s Miri Yoon. Meredith Wieck and Jon Humphrey were said to be overseeing for the project Lionsgate.

Since the Leprechaun reimagining announcement was first made, Vargas has been focused on his feature directorial debut, the high concept horror film Rosario. That movie is set to reach theatres on May 2nd, and then Vargas will be moving on to something that doesn’t involve a leprechaun.

Now, we wait to see who will be replacing Felipe Vargas at the helm of the Leprechaun reimagining. Who would you like to see direct a Leprechaun movie? Let us know by leaving a comment below.

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