R.L. Stine’s family-friendly horror book series **Goosebumps **has been drifting through development limbo since Sony snapped them up in 2008. Despite the source material’s ongoing popularity, the film version never quite seems to have materialised. That appears to be changing, however, with news that Jack Black is in talks to star.
According to The Wrap, Black is eyeing the role of a Stine-style author who is terrified when his horror creations literally leap off the page and spook him. If he does make a deal, it’ll reunite him with Shark Tale and (whisper it) Gulliver’s Travels director Rob Letterman, which suggests a lot of CG beasties could be coming our way.
Though the books are beaten only by the Harry Potter series in sales, **Goosebumps **has taken a long time to coalesce. Writers such as 1408’s Larry Karaszewski and Scott Alexander and Disturbia**’s Carl Ellsworth have taken a crack, with Jack The Giant Slayer**’s Darren Lemke the most recent recruit.
All the while, franchise expert Neal H. Moritz has kept the flag flying. Given that Stine’s work has found success on the small screen and in the video game world, everyone involved is probably hoping for a series of films. Incidentally, does the premise described above sound a little Secret Window / The Dark Half to anyone else?
Black was last seen in Bernie and will crop up for a cameo in Jason Segel’s new comedy, Sex Tap****e. He’s also been busy contributing voice work to Kung Fu Panda 3.