Columbia Pictures Corporation
Here are some updates to two remakes in the works, in case you forgot they were happening or had tried to wish them away with a magic spell:
First up is The Craft, a ’90s teen witch movie that seems to have a strong enough fanbase to elicit complaints around the internet that this is a cherished or even sacred property. Sadly, the protesting is too late, as development on this one was revealed to be happening back in December (albeit without much traction to the news). The latest, via The Hollywood Reporter, is that it will be handled by the team behind the horror movie Honeymoon, writer/director Leigh Janiak and co-writer Phil Graziadei. Interestingly enough, Janiak is also directing an episode of another rehash of something originally starring Neve Campbell, the Scream TV series. Previously we’ve seen unofficial remakes of The Craft but as an all-guy version and as an all-Rihanna version.
New Line Cinema
Next we have The Blob, a remake I haven’t seen any issues with from even its biggest fans, of which I am one (especially the previous remake from 1988). Again from The Hollywood Reporter, we learn Samuel L. Jackson will star in the movie as “a biochemistry professor attempting to thwart the other-worldly predator discovered deep within the earth.” Yes, this version has a blob with subterranean rather than extraterrestrial origins. Simon West is directing, and one of the producers is 96-year-old Jack Harris, who produced the 1958 original, its 1972 sequel and the 1988 version. Jackson recently starred in disappointing remakes of RoboCop and Oldboy, but don’t let that worry you.
20th Century Fox
Finally, one more bit of remake news today, if we can still qualify the current Planet of the Apes series of movies as remakes. The next installment of the franchise, that would be the third since it was rebooted again, will be titled War of the Planet of the Apes. Thanks to Collider for the update on the sequel, which is scheduled for July 14, 2017.