The Monkey director Osgood Perkins reveals why he changed Stephen King's story into a comedy and what the author's reaction was. Based on King's 1980 horror short story, the upcoming movie stars Theo James as twin brothers Hal and Bill, following the characters as they experience a series of shocking deaths after they discover their father's toy monkey. As is revealed in The Monkey's trailer, Perkins has added a great deal of dark comedy to the original King story, in addition to an abudance of blood and gore.

In a recent interview with Empire, Perkins breaks down his approach to The Monkey, affirming that his take on the story is very different from the source material. "I took liberties like a motherf--ker," he says. He reveals that James Wan's production company, Atomic Monster, optioned the rights to King's story several years ago, and that they approached him to direct it.