If you had to vote for one John Hughes movie to get the remake treatment which one would it be? The obvious answer is Curly Sue, but it looks like we have to wait on that one as a less obvious candidate has actually been green-lit.
Universal Pictures and producer Joel Silver are moving forward with a Weird Science remake, and I just want to assure you that this news has not and will not rape your childhood. Hughes really only has two untouchable films in his canon, and this is not one of them.
No cast or director announcements yet, but the film is set to be R-rated with Michael Bacall handling script duties. Bacall’s last film, 21 Jump Street, was also an R-rated ’80s reboot and one of the rare remakes that gets it right by honoring the original source material while still feeling fresh. It doesn’t hurt that the movie is ridiculously funny as well. Of course, Bacall’s resume also includes an R-rated stinker in the the form of Project X…
Hughes’ original was about two geeky friends, Gary and Wyatt (Anthony Michael Hall & Ilan Mitchell-Smith), who use computer skills and ladies lingerie to create a sexy woman (Kelly LeBrock) from scratch. She helps them get comfortable in their own skin and find the confidence they’ve lacked by forcing them into awkward situations and confronting the things they fear most like bullies, girls, their parents and post-apocalyptic gangs.
On the one hand I fully support an R-rated reboot of the film because I always felt the original lacked realism in the sex department. I don’t care how geeky you are… if a teenage boy creates a hot woman like LeBrock (circa 1985) he’s going to have some naughty fun with her. But on the other hand, a reboot is a chance at a fresh angle, and to that end I agree with Brian Lynch’s twitter where he suggested it should be “two nerdy girls making Channing Tatum.”
It’s a pretty crazy movie leaving room for lots of zaniness and change-ups in a remake, but I have to insist they keep one thing from the original. Bill Paxton’s Chet needs to return.
Bacall is currently working on a Jump Street sequel for 2014, so there’s no word as to when we should expect Weird Science 2.0.
