Javier Bardem in talks for Frankenstein's Monster role

He's set to join the likes of Tom Cruise, Johnny Depp, and Russell Crowe in a series of films based on Universal's slate of classic monsters

Universal is steaming ahead with their rebooted cinematic universe of classic monsters; with the likes of Tom Cruise, Johnny Depp, and Russell Crowe already onboard.

Under the guardianship of Alex Kurtzman, who penned Mission Impossible III, and Chris Morgan, screenwriter on the Fast & Furious franchise; Universal's current slate of proposed films feature The Invisible Man, The Mummy, Dracula, The Wolfman, Frankenstein, The Bride of Frankenstein, and Van Helsing; with an Avengers-style team-up movie also planned.

And it looks as if the studio may have found their Frankenstein's Monster, with Variety reporting that Javier Bardem is currently in talks for the role. It's not known when the character will first appear, with the first of the planned series being The Mummy, set for release on 24 March 2017. Both Cruise and Crowe will feature alongside Kingsman: Secret Service's Sofia Boutella's own female twist on the classic monster.

With Depp already cast as The Invisible Man, his own solo film is presumably one of the next to roll into production; Angelina Jolie is long-rumoured to star in The Bride of Frankenstein, with reports Universal's backing of her directorial enterprise By the Sea was undertaken in an effort to woo her talents.

Kurtzman is attached to direct The Mummy, also acting as producer alongside Morgan and Sean Daniel. The screenplay will be by Prometheus-scribe Jon Spaihts, who also worked on Marvel's upcoming Doctor Strange.

There's very little known about the film outside of the fact it's set in the present; with no news on how exactly it will differentiate from the 1999 version starring Brendan Frasier or, indeed, 1932's original The Mummy, as immortalised by Boris Karloff.