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Could James Wan's new Paranormal Activity gig and Blumhouse's Wolf Man misfire spell doom for Creature from the Black Lagoon?

Wan, who may be leaving The Conjuring franchise and is definitely working on the next Paranormal Activity movie, is set to helm the newest Universal Monster remake. But that may be dead in the water...

News by Grant DeArmitt, Staff Writer

Published on Fri Dec 05 2025

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Silly me, one truly great Invisible Man remake and I think we're in a new golden age of Universal Monsters. I guess you can't blame me, though (I certainly don't), since it seemed like there were big things ahead for the ol' gang. For example, remember that time James Wan was announced to be helming a new Creature from the Black Lagoon movie?

I was so young, then.

What feels like lifetimes later (14 months), it sure is looking like the Creature's chances are at low tide, with Wan accepting a brand new and presumably busy gig over at Blumhouse, and the Universal Monsters coming to a bit of a standstill. Let me explain what I mean and see if you don't agree with me.

Bummed as I am to be considering this possibility, my worries are predicated on a bit of objectively good news. Per The Hollywood Reporter , James Wan and his production company, Atomic Robot, are joining forces with Blumhouse to reinvigorate the Paranormal Activity franchise. Though no release date for the next movie has been set (if, indeed, there's even a premise behind it yet), we know that this will mark the eighth (!!) installment in the most successful found footage franchise in history.

Of course, what comes with that great power is great responsibility, a phrase that I have just thought up. Wan's role as one of Paranormal Activity's co-captains means that his previously loosened schedule (after his apparent exit from The Conjuring franchise) is now once again swamped - and yes I feel sad at making the pun - further meaning that there will be less time for him to visit that titular Pond of the Petrifying. But hey, at least there's still a lot of steam behind those Universal reboots, right?

Actually, no, there isn't. Much as it pains me to say, the latest of their ilk was a box office disappointment, opening to just $10.5 million dollars according to Fangoria. The werewolf film's mangy start was followed by a decidedly mixed reactions from critics, and then a sheer dropoff for its sophomore weekend (per Deadline). All this to say - if Wolf Man is how we're judging the state of Universal Monster reboots, then it's certainly possible Black Lagoon is dead in the water.

(Again, I don't like making puns that sad. Hell, maybe it's how I cope.)

But look, we're just your friendly neighborhood Popverse, aren't we? We don't have any insider information about what's going on with James Wan or his Creature from the Black Lagoon. Maybe he's in the process of casting Jacob Elordi in the role right now - we don't have the sources to 100% confirm that is not happening. All we have is an eye on the horizon, and after a few years of watching horror movies make their way to screens, an occasionally correct sense of which way the tide is turning.

Dammit.

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Grant DeArmitt: Grant DeArmitt (he/him) likes horror, comics, and the unholy union of the two. In the past, and despite their better judgment, he has written for Nightmare on Film Street and Newsarama. He lives in Brooklyn with his partner, Kingsley, and corgi, Legs.