One of the single most surprising things about the current complexion of modern horror is that nobody has opted to reboot, remake, or breathe new life into the Urban Legend franchise. Virtually every other noteworthy IP has been dusted off at least once, but the street-level slasher saga has been sitting on the shelf gathering dust since 2005’s threequel Bloody Mary.
In fairness, that might have something to do with the fact all three installments were hardly greeted with glowing praise, even by the less discerning gorehounds who just want to witness bloody murder onscreen. Urban Legend could only rustle up a 24 percent Rotten Tomatoes score and 37 percent user rating, even if it did manage to haul in $72 million at the box office on a $14 million budget.
Right on cue, Jamie Blanks’ dive into the seedy world of murder and mayhem has been charging up the streaming ranks with Halloween less than a week away. As per FlixPatrol, Urban Legend has snagged a Top 10 spot on the HBO Max charts in 20 countries, good enough to see it stab its way to 11th position on the worldwide watch-list.
The story finds a university campus plagued by a string of killings resembling the urban legends of old, with the pattern firmly emerging as Alicia Witt’s Natalie tries to uncover who exactly is offing alumni with such increasing regularity. It’s by-the-numbers stuff, but one notable element is the cast – which features a substantial mix of heavy-hitting horror legends.
As well as Brad “voice of Chucky” Dourif, Halloween scream queen Danielle Harris is also part of the ensemble, as is Freddy Krueger himself Robert Englund, along with veteran character actor Julian Richings. If you’re feeling really generous, you can also add Sharknado veteran Tara Reid and Dr. Michael Morbius himself Jared Leto to the list, but it’s not obligatory.