Gutiérrez to Direct the Next Installment of “The Ring”

F. Javier Gutiérrez is preparing to bring a popular horror film franchise back to life.

Paramount Pictures has hired the Spanish filmmaker, one of the most awarded and lauded fantasy genre filmmakers his native country, to direct the third installment of its The Ring series.

F. Javier Gutierrez

It marks Gutiérrez’s second studio genre franchise film after Relativity Media and The Weinstein Co. chose him to helm the reboot of The Crow in another hotly contested director search.

The Ring threequel is the latest installment of the $400M-grossing horror franchise first launched in the U.S. by Gore Verbinski in 2002 with The Ring and its sequel The Ring 2, both starring Naomi Watts as a woman caught in the clutches of a cursed video tape.

The Ring

The Japanese original Ringu, directed by Hideo Nakata and adapted from the novel by Kōji Suzuki, spawned its own series of prequel/sequels and spin-off films and led a wave of J-horror Hollywood remakes throughout the 2000s.

Gutiérrez earned genre cred on the international scene with his shorts Braziland La habitacion de Norman, followed by his 2008 debut feature Before the Fall (Tres días).

Gutierrez Finds His “The Crow” Lead in Luke Evans

It appears that F. Javier Gutierrez has found his Crow

Despite his hectic schedule, Luke Evans could soon be cast in the 39-year-old Spanish filmmaker’s reboot of The Crow franchise.

F. Javier Gutierrez

The Welsh actor was the original choice, but he was just cast as the lead in Dracula Year Zero, serves as the villain in Fast & Furious 6 and is portraying Bard the Bowman in The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug.

Evans seemed unavailable because of production on Dracula and promotion on The Hobbit.

After looking at Tom Hiddleston and Alexander Skarsgard, Gutierrez and the film’s producers have decided to push the start date to early next year to accommodate Evans’ schedule and ultimately secure the actor.

Producers and Evans are currently in negotiations with a deal expected soon.

The Crow

The role of The Crow was originated by Brandon Lee, who died tragically during production on the 1994 Alex Proyas-directed revenge story based on the James O’Barr comic book series.

Gutiérrez Signs with William Morris Endeavor

F. Javier Gutiérrez has new representation…

The 39-year-old Spanish filmmaker has signed with William Morris Endeavor (WME).

F-Javier-Gutirrez-01

Gutiérrez, one of the most awarded and heralded fantasy genre filmmakers in his native country, recently landed the job directing the reboot of the James O’Barr cult fanboy classic The Crow at Relativity Media.

Gutierrez, who has been repped at Paradigm, previously wrote and directed the Spanish-language thriller Before the Fall, a film that won Best Motion Picture and Best Screenplay at the Malaga Film Festival.

In addition, Gutierrez is set to produce the sci-fi project The Greys for Dimension Films, as well as produce House Of Horror with James Wan, currently in production at Dimension Films.