Anaconda: The Great Hunt (2025)

Anaconda: The Great Hunt (2025): A Meta Horror-Comedy Reboot

Anaconda: The Great Hunt (2025) is not your typical monster movie reboot. Directed by Tom Gormican, the film boldly reinvents the original 1997 Anaconda by blending horror, adventure, and meta-comedy. Instead of following a group of scientists or explorers, this version introduces a crew of washed-up actors and creatives who set out to remake their favorite childhood movie—only to stumble into a terrifying real-life encounter with a monstrous snake.

Jack Black stars as Doug, a wedding videographer and nostalgic dreamer who rallies his old friends to shoot a low-budget homage to Anaconda in the wilderness. Paul Rudd plays Griff, a former background actor who reluctantly joins the project in search of personal meaning. They’re joined by an eclectic cast that includes Daniela Melchior, Thandiwe Newton, Steve Zahn, Selton Mello, and Ione Skye. What begins as a goofy tribute soon spirals into chaos when the group realizes that the giant snake stalking them is no special effect.

Filmed in Australia’s lush Gold Coast region, the movie captures a vibrant jungle atmosphere while balancing genuine thrills with absurdist humor. The natural setting lends authenticity to the survival-horror elements, contrasting sharply with the characters’ delusional filmmaking efforts. What was meant to be a fun, amateur production becomes a deadly struggle for survival as the anaconda picks them off one by one.

Unlike the campy tone of the original or the pure horror of earlier sequels, this reboot leans into a self-aware style. The characters frequently comment on movie tropes, making light of their own situation while simultaneously facing real danger. The film plays with audience expectations, offering both comedic banter and shocking, suspenseful moments. Black and Rudd bring a surprising depth to their roles, balancing humor with real emotional stakes as their characters grapple with failure, aging, and fear.

Director Tom Gormican, known for mixing genre and satire, keeps the pace tight and the tone unpredictable. While the movie pokes fun at Hollywood reboots and nostalgia, it also delivers on its promise of thrills and big-screen spectacle. The snake itself is impressively rendered, with modern effects used to terrifying, visceral effect.

Set for release in late 2025, Anaconda: The Great Hunt offers a fresh and unexpected take on a familiar franchise—blending meta-humor, character-driven drama, and classic creature-feature suspense into a wild jungle adventure that doesn’t take itself too seriously, yet still delivers the chills.