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Matthijs van Heijningen Jr. is Directing The Thing Prequel?

by Alex Billington
January 15, 2009
Source: Bloody-Disgusting

Who the heck is this Matthijs van Heijningen Jr.? Not only is he attached to direct Zack Snyder's Army of the Dead, but now he's supposedly also attached to direct The Thing prequel that we've been hearing about recently. The horror gurus over at Bloody-Disgusting have learned that van Heijningen is attached to direct this prequel to John Carpenter's classic thriller from 1982 which is being developed at Universal. The odd thing is that we know absolutely nothing about this guy, although it seems like he may be the next big thing. Could he actually turn this prequel into something that lives up to Carpenter's film?

As for the plot of this prequel, as we mentioned previously, it will focus on the Norwegian camps in the Antarctic that were ravaged by the alien first before the Americans (in The Thing) discovered them. Bloody-Disgusting is also saying that van Heijningen is pushing to make the lead character of his prequel that of R.J. MacReady's brother; in the original, MacReady was played by Kurt Russell. To be honest, I'm actually liking the sound of this prequel so far, even though early details seem to be sketchy. In the meantime, we'll see what we can find out about this Matthijs van Heijningen Jr. and if he really is the next big thing.

Filed under Movie News, Rumors

From around the web:

chrizzle

seems to be a dutch guy
adan

cool
The Real Alex

What would be more cool is if they made a sequel to the first movie that took off right where they left off. I know, the actors are much older now with more wrinkles, but nothing a little make-up (and a lot of beard) can't cover up...
http://Firstshowing.net The_Phantom

I thought that was Emile Hirsch in the picture there. They should ask him to play the brother, suggestion...
Drake

i agree with phantom
Itri

That was a good observation phantom. Emile Hirsch in this would be awesome. And yeah, I'm up for a prequel as long as this new guy is the real deal (who he is again? does anybody know? lol).
Harvey Harvey Harvey Dent

Wait did they ever mention that Maccready had a brother at the Norwegian camp?
Said

I dont care who he is as long as he does a good job at the prequel, cause The Thing is my favorte Horror movie
moldybread

how is a prequel going to be anything except more of the same that we saw in The Thing??? a sequel could at least provide a different story line....I think the prequel is a bad idea and waste of effort that could go into a decent followup the first one...jmo...
http://bwacksfilmspot.blogspot.com/ Betterchill

I think you are all absolutely stupid. That is clearly not Emile Hirsch that is Kurt Russell in John Carpenters classic 1982 horror film "The Thing" which is the subject of this blog not "Milk". Just thinking that it is Emile Hirsch means you have no right to talk about "The Thing" in the first place. They should not make a prequel or a sequel to this film, it is a modern horror classic and to do anything more with this by turning it into a franchise would be a disgrace. Who the hell is this guy set to direct it anyways? Everyone needs to stop making remakes and sequels and prequels to films that have definite endings! Why doesn't someone come up with an original idea, especially so-called up and coming directors?
Blackstar

I have to say I like the idea of seeing what happened to the Norwegians. It could be very reflective of the original "The Thing from Another World (1951)". I think MacReady's brother is a bit of a stretch for some connection. It would seem more logical to me that one of the scientists had some kind of professional/casual relationship with another member of the US#31 group, but could not contact them. And no one at the US post knew they were at the NORG camp. (old friend, colleague, etc). Either way I look forward to hearing more. If they can keep the successful tone and pacing of John Carpenter's, I think it might be a good one.
Vidhoe

R.J. MacReady's brother at the Norwegian camp? Come on! That would mean MacReady would have to know about his brother when they found the camp & the remains. That idea would not mesh with the other film. If you're going to make it about what happened at the Norwegian camps, do it with new Norwegian characters. MacReady's brother doesn't have to be in it in order to make a prequel work. If you're gonna put the brother in it, do it as a solid sequel. If not, they're already on the road to ruin. They could find the frozen remains of MacReady, Childs, and the burnt bodies of the rest of the team. One of those bodies could still be infected. All it takes is a single cell of the alien to start the process over again.
avi

the thing is a classic,the pre quel a shitty follow up!
Shige

#10 Nobody claims its Emily Hirch either. They just said Kurt looks like Hirch in that picture.
Fisherr

It was a good movie, hope they don't do a chessy prequel.
JimD

Look forward to it. I loved The Thing.
http://www.captainatomic.com Atomic_Raj

I agree with Vidhoe, I think that pushing to make the lead character in the prequel to be the brother of MacReady would be a huge mistake as there is no indication in the original movie that he had a brother. Start afresh with new characters and dont spoil it by having american accented charcters in it. It's a NORWEGIAN CAMP, people. Get a grip!!! The Thing is a classic. The effects ground breaking (even by today's prosthetic standards) and they looked amazing. Having it set at the Norwesian camp would just be like making the orignal movie but in a different camp. What's the point of that? Let's have a proper sequel. Writers get your thinking caps on and come up with something spectacular. If it is going to be a prequel then why not go way back to when the thing actually crash landed on the planet. How about a cross between Apocolyptica (sorry if the spelling is a bit off but you know what I mean)meets the Predator type of movie. Just an idea.
My name is Pat

YES!!! i loved the original The Thing and to see how it all started off will be amazing....I just really hope it dosent leave the whole sense of the fact that the group of people are alone with no help...that was the most interesting thing i liked about the movie.....i think it can work and turn out nice if done correctly Untill next time
John J

Why don't they re-release the original in a brand new print. Don't mess with perfection.
Mike Eagle

What would be interesting is to consider a remake of the ORIGINAL film that inspired John Carpenter & that would be Howard Hawks 1951 classic 'The Thing From Another World'. Now that was a scary movie & inspite of it's vintage it srill works today!
bzink

you guys took a wrong snake turn at bzink st. and ended up in big trouble in lil chinatwn.the omly remake i wan see iz kurt,keith an karp showboatin some serious synopsis suckas.bingzank.
nktwrk

READ #12, NUFF SAID.
Jeff C.

#19- Oh this might be cool if we can see a limited re-release of The Thing in theaters prior to the release of this prequel. I never did get to see it on the big screen. I am also hoping one day to see Aliens or Alien on the big screen, that was one I was too young to catch as well. Having both Bladerunner and Wiz of Oz in the theaters in the last few years was cool. Hackers was re-released as a promotion too but I missed that. Curious - What other movies have been re-released to the big screen in the last 10-15 years?
Sam

This Project is SERIOUSLY Hush - Hush! No Leaked Photos of The Special Effects! THAT in itself is IMPRESSIVE! I Have ug PASSED China to see if there was Any New information or New Photos, and There is NOTHING! I can only GUESS What will happen, so i Guess GUESSING is The Only THING We Have to Work With, so I'll mention a Few Theories, and Perhaps Others can Mention THEIR ideas! ONE: Once The Found Creature Thaws Out and Disappears into The Camp's Corners, it will Emerge as a Dog! The Norwegian Dog Handler will be taken Over NEXT! Then, When The Dog Handler is in the Room Alone with a Fellow CoWorker, It will Attempt to Take HIM Over, and Anothe Person will enter The Room and Discover The Thing's Secret, and will Spread The Word!