Director Mark Romanek has dropped out of the Universal horror film “The Wolf Man,” just weeks before filming was scheduled to star.

According to the Hollywood Reporter, the issue was a financial one – Romanek asked for additional money to make the film, while the studio kept its ground on its intention to remain within the $100 million range.

Anticipated as an R rated horror movie, “The Wolf Man” is hardly blockbuster fare.

Universal is now looking to find a replacement. Production is scheduled to begin in March. The script penned by Romanek and Andrew Kevin Walker (“Se7en,” “Sleepy Hollow,” “8MM”) remains in place and will not undergo any changes from the new director, according to the HR.

Benicio Del Toro is still attached to portray the film’s main character, a man who returns to his ancestral home in Victorian England, where he is bit by a werewolf. Sir Anthony Hopkins and Emily Blunt (“The Devil Wears Prada”) co-star.

Producers Scott Stuber and Mary Parent are also still on board, as well as special effects expert Rick Baker.

“The Wolf Man,” expected to be released in 2009, is a remake of the eponymous Universal Pictures 1941 horror film starring Lon Chaney, Jr., Claude Rains, and Bela Lugosi.

The Hollywood Reporter quotes Universal as saying: “Romanek leaves behind a well-prepped production that is poised to move forward, and Universal thanks him for helping bring one of its most cherished legacies and characters to renewed life.”

Romanek started out as a music video director, working with artists such as Audioslave, Michael Jackson, Nine Inch Nails, Fiona Apple and Jay-Z.

He wrote and directed 2002's “One Hour Photo,” starring Robin Williams as a deranged department store photo processor.

The Hollywood Reporter notes that this is the second timer Universal needs to adapt to unforeseen changes in one of its projects, after Brad Pitt and Edward Norton dropped out of “State of Play” in December, weeks before shooting. They were quickly replaced with Russell Crowe and Ben Affleck.