Andi Shankar, producer of Dredd, has reaffirmed his belief in the Judge Dredd franchise and believes that streaming could mean a future for the comic book property adapted into film in 2012.
Speaking to podcast ComicBook Nation to promote his new Netflix original series Guardians of Justice, Shankar was questioned on Dredd‘s future and if it’s something he’s working on.
“Look, I don’t own or control the rights to Dredd. So if you’re asking about me and the next project that I do? I don’t control the rights there.”
While he doesn’t have any say on the future of the franchise, he does believe that the recent studio infatuation with streaming services could reanimate the property from its decade cinematic slumber.
“On a macro level: As much as the streaming thing felt like the Wild, Wild West for a long time… It’s getting more formalized and more streamlined today…There’s also just more content out there, and more opportunities to make things because there’s more need for content. And that’s just created a new paradigm.”
When pressed further, he was confident this paradigm could lead to Dredd’s return: “Yeah. The answer is: absolutely.”
The streaming golden age is upon us, with Disney Plus, Netflix, Apple TV Plus and more all spending blockbuster movie budgets on their streaming originals, and constantly looking for new properties to adapt.
Dredd‘s failures at the box office dented any chance of a sequel, but the cult following the Karl Urban flick has garnered has been food for thought at studios. Urban has expressed interest in returning to the role, as has his co-star Olivia Thirlby as recently as 2021.
