38 years after the original, David Cronenberg’s body horror classic The Fly is getting a surprise follow-up, and it’s not a remake

A new movie based on David Cronenberg’s body horror The Fly is in development – and die hard fans of the 1986 film need not worry, because 20th Century Studios promises it’s not a remake.

Deadline confirmed the news on Monday, November 4, as it announced that Nikyatu Jusu is set to write and direct a fresh flick which takes place “in the universe” of the original. Chernin Entertainment’s Peter Chernin and Jenno Topping are set to produce.

Based on the 1957 short story by George Langelaan, which was first adapted in 1958, The Fly stars Geena Davis and Jeff Goldblum and follows Seth Brundle, an eccentric scientist who gets more than he bargained for when he invents a teleportation machine and accidentally splices his DNA with that of a bluebottle during a test run.

Seth’s grotesque transformation, with its practical effects spear-headed by artist Chris Walas, earned the movie an Academy Award for Best Makeup in 1987. The film itself grossed $60 million at the worldwide box-office.

It cemented Cronenberg – who had helmed the likes of Shivers, Rapid, Videodrome, and Scanners by that point – as a genre legend, before he went on to direct Dead Ringers, Crash, Crimes of the Future, and this year’s The Shrouds.

Having previously directed psychological thriller Nanny for Prime Video, Jusu is currently working on a Night of the Living Dead sequel and a separate project for Universal and Jordan Peele’s production company Monkeypaw. 

For more, check out our list of the best horror movies of all time, or our guide to the most exciting upcoming horror movies heading our way.