Ughh...I Am Prequel

In rather disappointing news Warner Bros have decided to suck as much as they can out of I Am Legend and Will Smith and will be developing a prequel to the feature released that winter. Will Smith will reprise his role as scientist Robert Neville. Variety reports that the prequel will chronicle the final days of humanity in New York before a man-made virus caused a plague that left Smith’s character the lone survivor among a mutated mob in the city.

Spoilers ahead: (If you haven't seen I Am Legend you might want to skip the rest of this article)

The main reason this bothers me so much is, we've already seen it! I Am Legend did a good job of giving the viewer backstory including the scene where Smith loses his family. True we didn't see the ultimate climax where the entire city of New York is wiped out except Smith, but I Am Legend was a complete story and no need for a prequel/sequel. An example that comes to mind is Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning. From the beginning of that family we see the same Hewitt family that is in Texas Chainsaw Massacre. The only difference is grandpa's legs. You immediately realize, no one in the Hewitt family will die in the film, taking away any intesity the film tries to build. Here in the prequel to I Am Legend, we already know Smith is the last man in New York City, we know what he has lost, so alot of the potency is dampened.

My second gripe is the cgi vampire-hybrids. They were really terrible in action in the first film and unless they dramatically improve the concept and creation of them, it's going to be terribly straining. There was one great scene when Neville goes in after his dog and see the vamp's huddled together panting. Outside of that scene, they looked terrible! I really hope the creative team comes up with a different design to make them look more human-like. Considering this is a prequel and the earlier stages of the virus, they could appear to be less infected (just a thought).

Despite my opinon and I am sure many others, WB is moving forward with the project which is being co produced by Overbrook Entertainment and Weed Road alongside Warner. The studio has hired D.B. Weiss to pen a script that is based on an outline Smith and company have developed over the last couple of months. No production schedule has been set as of yet.


What are your thoughts on an I Am Legend prequel? Should WB leave the film alone? Did you know Will Smith turned down admission to M.I.T. to pursue his singing career? Strikeback...