Joe Dante says Hollywood won’t feed us the Little Shop of Horrors reboot anytime soon as the project gets unpotted

If you’re hungry for the planned Little Shop of Horrors reboot, prepare to order something off-menu. According to Joe Dante (Gremlins, Innerspace, Small Soldiers), one of the creative forces behind the project, it’s getting shelved indefinitely. News about a Little Shop of Horrors reboot sprouted in March 2024, but updates about a new version of the 1980s musical have been scarce. The tentatively titled Little Shop of Halloween Horrors reboot would have been a contemporary take on the fan-favorite alien invasion story about a sentient plant that feeds on human flesh until it can grow into a Kaiju-sized monster to dole out vegetative violence.

Joe Dante commented with The Direct on the project’s status, or lack thereof, saying, “The word is ‘stasis,’ not status. At the moment, like so many things in town, nothing’s happening, and we always hope that will change, but it’s not the greatest time right now to [get] projects off the ground.”

Garbage like this is why we can’t have nice things, people! While I’m not 100% certain Little Shop needs a reboot, the thought of Joe Dante reteaming with Roger Corman would have been enough to excite me. Sadly, Corman passed in May 2024, making the collaboration impossible.

When Little Shop of Halloween Horrors was still a thing, reports said Taron Egerton could have played Seymour Krelborn, with Scarlett Johansson as Audrey and Chris Evans as the villainous dentist Orin Scrivello D.D.S.

Little Shop of Horrors started as a horror comedy directed by Roger Corman in 1960. Alan Menken and Howard Ashman teamed up to turn the concept into a stage musical in 1982, and director Frank Oz brought the musical to the screen with a film released in 1986.

The story goes a little something like this:

Meek flower shop assistant Seymour pines for co-worker Audrey. During a total eclipse, he discovers an unusual plant he names Audrey II, which feeds only on human flesh and blood. The growing plant attracts a great deal of business for the previously struggling store. After Seymour feeds Audrey’s boyfriend, Orin, to the plant after Orin’s accidental death, he must come up with more bodies for the increasingly bloodthirsty plant.

Are you bummed to hear the Little Shop of Horrors reboot is unlikely to happen? Let us know in the comments section below.

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