Few of us probably expected to still be talking about the Underworld series nearly a decade after Len Wiseman and Kate Beckinsale collaborated on the first vampire-versus-werewolf thriller in 2003. But with subsequent sequels, the gothic action franchise has found ways to improve the presentation, even as they’ve continuously recycled story elements. And now Underworld: Awakening appears ready to take the story to yet another level.
The fourth Underworld film will be released on IMAX by Sony Picture’s Entertainment as a day-and-date release on January 20, 2012. It’s the first installment in the series to be screened in IMAX, as well as the first to screen in 3D. And as Will points out, the latest trailer appears to go out of its way to utilize the technology by throwing as much as it can off the screen at its audience.
"Underworld is one of Screen Gems' most important franchises, so it's important to us to present the movie as its fans want to see it: on the IMAX screen," Rory Bruer, president of Worldwide Distribution for Sony Pictures Releasing, said to the Hollywood Reporter.
Horror and IMAX appear to be going hand in hand lately, with the fifth Final Destination also looming large (and earning $41.8 million domestically in the process). Now we need to see how Awakening co-directors Måns Mårlind and Björn Stein take advantage of the silver screen real estate the IMAX format provides them. Kate Beckinsale returns as Selene, and will be paired with a daughter (India Eisley) in a mission to take down BioCom before they can manufacture a breed of super-powered Lycans.
