Hollywood has criminally underutilized vampires in recent years. Though these past two years have somewhat rectified that with The Last Voyage of the Demeter and the upcoming Nosferatu remake, there was a time – not so long ago – when all we knew about Hollywood vampires was that they sparkled and fell in love with teenagers. At the same time, the Underworld franchise was the gritty, gothic antidote to all that teen angst. This unlikely hit series proved that with enough leather, guns, and Kate Beckinsale in a skintight catsuit, audiences would happily embrace a convoluted mythos of vampire-werewolf warfare.
Len Wiseman’s Passion
At the bloody heart of Underworld‘s success was director Len Wiseman’s unapologetic love for the world he was building. This was a labor of passion, born from Wiseman’s fascination with comics and horror. So enamored was he with his creation that he even married its star, Kate Beckinsale, essentially cementing them as the world’s sexiest goth couple (sorry, Tim Burton and Helena Bonham Carter.)
It’s been almost a decade since the Underworld franchise last bared its fangs. 2016’s Underworld: Blood Wars marked the final chapter in the Underworld saga. Though critics didn’t precisely love the movie – scoring an abysmal 21% on Rotten Tomatoes – die-hard fans were left wanting more from the epic battle between vampires and lycans.
A Future for Underworld?
The good news is that the wait might just be about to end. In a 2023 interview with Entertainment Weekly, Len Wiseman confirmed there’s still some fuel left in the tank for Underworld – even if it’s not exactly in the same format fans have grown used to. “There’s a future to Underworld for sure,” were Wiseman’s reassuring words for the anxious fans. That said, he also commented on how different the Underworld franchise would be moving forward. Wiseman doesn’t mention if there will be new Underworld movies, but he explicitly confirms the franchise isn’t over just yet.
It’s been a year since Wiseman last updated fans on the Underworld TV series. Still, the initial reaction to the EW interview proves fans are more than ready to delve into this franchise once more. “There was so much lore in the first movie I always felt it would be perfect for a TV series,” commented one Reddit user, a sentiment that most users of the r/television subreddit shared.
The Ever-Growing Thirst for More Underworld
As far as movies go, Underworld is kind of in a tight spot at the moment. Wiseman hasn’t been directing the films for a while, acting as a producer. Currently, the filmmaker is working relentlessly on Ballerina, a John Wick spin-off set to release in 2025. The most likely scenario is that we won’t hear any news regarding the future of Underworld until Ballerina is out in theaters.
As the years go by, the thirst for more Underworld only grows stronger. Fans have been practically howling at the moon for a fresh installment that can recapture the stylish, leather-clad glory of the early 2000s entries. As another Redditor perfectly put it, Underworld “Got increasingly worse as it went along, and it was always just campy fun, but I never didn’t enjoy myself watching the movies.”
Whatever form it takes, one thing is certain – Underworld needs to make its grand return sooner rather than later. This unique horror/action hybrid helped put vampires back on the map – before they got a bad case of teenage mopiness. The world needs that delicious blend of sleek guns, gothic aesthetics, and Kate Beckinsale kicking werewolf tail again. And Amazon Prime’s Canary Black proves she still has all the action moves, too.
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