Re-Animator (film Series)

''Re-Animator'' is an American film series consisting of three horror films directed by Stuart Gordon and Brian Yuzna. Loosely based on the 1922 serialized short story "Herbert West–Reanimator" by H. P. Lovecraft, the films follow the exploits of Herbert West, the inventor of a serum that can re-animate deceased bodies. West is portrayed by Jeffrey Combs in all three films.

The first film in the series, ''Re-Animator'', was released in 1985. Directed by Gordon and produced by Yuzna, it stars Combs alongside Bruce Abbott, Barbara Crampton, and David Gale. It was followed by a sequel, ''Bride of Re-Animator'', in 1990, directed by Yuzna and again starring Combs and Abbott. The third film, '' Beyond Re-Animator'', was released in 2003.

Films

Unproduced sequels

After the conclusion of ''Beyond Re-Animator'', Brian Yuzna wanted to produce a sequel trilogy to the series. The first of which would've been titled ''House of Re-Animator'' and would have featured William H. Macy as a George W. Bush inspired President of the United States who dies in office with Herbert West enlisted by the office to bring him back to life. The film would have seen Stuart Gordon as director and Dennis Paoli as writer, and the return of Jeffrey Combs as Herbert West and Bruce Abbott as Dan Cain.

The second film would've been titled ''Island of Re-Animator'' and seen Dr. West having set up a laboratory on a secluded island to continue his research in an ''The Island of Doctor Moreau''-style story,. Richard Raaphorst, a concept artist who had worked on other Fantastic Factory productions, was tasked by Yuzna with creating some artwork for the film but Yuzna ultimately felt none of it worked in the world of ''Re-Animator''. Some of Raaphorst's artwork were speculated to have been reused for his own directorial effort, ''Frankenstein's Army''.

The final film in the trilogy would've been titled ''Re-Animator Begins'' and would've featured an amnesiac Hebert West rescued from an asylum by a young female doctor who takes him to Zürich where it's revealed she's the granddaughter of Dr. Hans Gruber from the first film who is still living in his re-animated state. The film would've seen Hebert West passing the torch of ''Re-Animator'' to Gruber's granddaughter.

The sequel trilogy ultimately never happened due to inability to secure financing, and while an attempt to sell ''House of Re-Animator'' as a standalone movie were met with some interest the sequel was deemed too expensive and the Great Recession effectively killed the project.

Remakes

Attempts were made by Yuzna and John Penney in pitching a reboot of ''Re-Animator'' and while they were met with interest from companies such as Warner Bros., the two abandoned this route when the studios showed interest primarily in the name recognition and intended to play ''Re-Animator'' as a dark and serious horror film in contrast to the more darkly comedic nature of the prior films.

In 2017, an Italian version entitled ''Herbert West: Re-Animator'' was released with Emanuele Cerman as Dr. Herbert West.

A film by the name of ''Antihuman'' was set to release in early 2017 before being rebranded as ''Re-Animator: Evolution'', with Johnathon Schaech in the lead role as Dr. Herbert West. The title was then changed to ''Herbert West: Re-Animator'' with a release date of December 15, 2018, and Schaech no longer on the cast list. It was described as "much darker, more thought-provoking, and more so grounded in science than the original film" and to be in tune with the original Lovecraft story. However, no news has been released since late 2016.

In April 2025, it was reported Jeffrey Lewis and Keith Previte of Lakewood Entertainment along with Andrew Trapani would be producing a new adaptation of ''Herbert West: Reanimator'' with ''The Haunting in Connecticut'' screenwriters Adam Simon and Tim Metcalfe set to write the script.

Other media

'' Re-Animator: The Musical'', based on the first movie, debuted in 2011.

Comic books

Between 1991 and 1992, Adventure Comics, a division of Malibu Comics, released two miniseries related to the films:
* ''Re-Animator'', a three-issue adaptation of the first movie.
* ''Re-Animator: Dawn of the Re-Animator'', a four-issue prequel to the films.

In 2004, the four-issue comic ''Army of Darkness vs. Re-Animator'' was released by Dynamite Entertainment. The crossover became the first four issues of the ongoing ''Army of Darkness'' comic series, and additional ''Army of Darkness''/''Re-Animator'' crossover comics would be released by Dynamite in 2013 and 2022. Dynamite would publish a standalone ''Re-Animator'' comic in 2015 as a sequel to the crossover, followed by ''Vampirella vs. Re-Animator'' in 2018.

In 2008 the character featured in issue 15 of the comic book series ''Hack/Slash''. In the issue the character of Cassie must deal with the fallout from her long lost father colluding with West. The issue is set chronologically after the events in the third film.

References

External links

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Film series introduced in 1985
American science fiction horror films
English-language films
Horror film series
American zombie films
Resurrection in film