The Addams Family have been absent from cinema screens for too long. It’s been a whopping 26 years since Addams Family Values hit theaters (the less said about the straight-to-video 1998 Addams Family Reunion the better), but now they’re back, in animated form! And judging by this recently-released poster (seen below), it appears that The Addams Family Halloween is going to stick very closely to cartoonist Charles Addams’ original designs in the comic strip.
This take on America’s strangest family is being headed by Sausage Party directors Greg Tiernan and Conrad Vernon, who’ve explained that they’ve been devouring the strips from The New Yorker for inspiration.
Here’s what Vernon had to say about the project a while back:
“Greg and I have always been a fan of the Addams Family in past versions, so when we set out to make this movie, we were excited to do something new. With that in mind, I drew from the brilliantly original Charles Addams New Yorker cartoons for the look of the film and decided to tell the story of how Gomez and Morticia meet, find their house and start their family. This unique approach is what drew me in to direct the film. The reimagining also extends to the stellar cast we’ve put together who will each bring their own spin to our film that will appeal to longtime fans of the Addams and introduce them to a new generation.”
He’s right though, as this project does have a seriously impressive voice cast. The lineup is: Oscar Isaac (Gomez), Chloe Grace Moretz (Wednesday Addams), Charlize Theron (Morticia), Finn Wolfhard (Pugsley), Allison Janney (Margaux Needler), Nick Kroll (Uncle Fester), Elsie Fisher (Parker Needler), Aimee Garcia (Denise), Bette Midler (Grandmama) and Scott Underwood (Mitch).
I think the two live-action adaptations from the early 90s are underrated movies, and, like this, they were blessed with a truly magnificent ensemble cast. If this effort can nail the Addams Family tone and not make things too cute or cuddly, it could be onto a winner. And who knows, maybe we’ll even get another magnificent licensed pinball table out of the film?
In any case, we should get a better idea of what The Addams Family Halloween will be like on April 10th, when the first trailer hits the web.
