Netflix picked up the rights to Stephen King's 1981 novel Cujo and is currently developing a new adaptation. Now, The Hollywood Reporter says acclaimed director Darren Aronofsky—best known for Requiem for a Dream, Black Swan, Mother!, and The Whale—is circling the project.
The 1983 version directed by Lewis Teague was a modest box office success despite garnering mixed reviews. In the decades since, Cujo has become a cult classic, with many praising the central performance from Dee Wallace who plays a desperate mother trying to protect her son from Cujo's wrath.
The poor St. Bernard starts out as your typical happy-go-lucky dog until he gets bitten by a rabid bat and turns feral. One of the film's most famous scenes is the climactic car showdown toward the end, when Cujo is frantically trying to break into Donna's (Wallace) vehicle as she hides inside it with her son. As if the angry dog isn't enough, they happen to get stuck inside the Ford Pinto on an extraordinarily hot day with the sun relentlessly pounding down and the car's alternator dying, trapping them inside.
Dogs are man's best friend so usually when they're starring in a movie it's as the sidekick or even in a heroic role. Cujo significant shakes things up by turning a beloved pet into a monstrosity. And considering rabies is an actual, terrifying threat with no cure, the concept of someone's adorable dog becoming a foaming-at-the-mouth creature with is an all-too-real possibility.
Aronofsky's movies are often very disturbing. I can think of at least one or more nightmare-inducing moments from each film in his filmography, so I can imagine his version of Cujo being something downright horrific. Considering his penchant for creating deeply psychological films, it'll be very interesting to see how his tastes translate to a killer-dog movie.
Should Aronofosky sign onto the project, he's expected to start meeting with potential writers soon. So far, the only other name attached to the project is Roy Lee as a producer. He's worked on several King adaptations already, including both of Andy Muschietti's It films, Max's recent take on Salem's Lot, and the upcoming Lionsgate adaptation of The Long Walk.
The director's next film is the crime thriller Caught Stealing starring Austin Butler, Zoë Kravitz, and Regina King. Sony will release the film in theaters this August.