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Beetlejuice
TBD
Warner Bros. hired Seth Grahame-Smith to write a screenplay that director Tim Burton is apparently happy with, who’s spoken to star Michael Keaton, guaranteeing Winona Ryder’s return. The pieces are in place, the long-gestating sequel just needs a start date.
Beverly Hills Cop
March 2016
The return of Detroit fish-out-water cop Axel Foley has been in discussion since the mid-1990′s. Franchise star Eddie Murphy has stated his main motivation in returning to the series was the third film was “horrible” and he didn’t “want to leave the series like that.”
Director Brett Ratner has been attached to the project since 2008, working off several different drafts of the script. At one time during the pre-production phase, Murphy stated the film would not be happening, and instead was developing a TV series with CBS based on Foley’s son Aaron. A pilot was shot with Brandon T. Jackson as Foley, and Kevin Pollak, and David Denam rounding out the cast, but CBS eventually passed .
Eddie Murphy said in a recent Rolling Stone interview, “I haven’t done a street guy, working class, blue-collar character in ages so maybe it’s like, ‘Oh, wow, I didn’t remember he was able to do that.” Beverly Hill Cop IV is now a go, coming to theaters within two years.
Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure
TBD
“We are all just dust in the wind…dude!”
Despite the fact MGM has yet to greenlight the project, air-guitar aficionados Keanu Reeves and Alex Winter have stated that a script has been completed focusing on the changes Bill and Ted have experienced over the past twenty years. Galaxy Quest director Dean Parisot has signed on to direct a script by original writers Chris Matheson and Ed Solomon.
Blade Runner
TBD
It was announced that Ridley Scott would direct a new Blade Runner sequel and after several delays, it appears it may happen within the next couple of years, depending on when Scott fits in the Prometheus sequel. “It’s not a rumor—it’s happening. With Harrison Ford? I don’t know yet. Is he too old? Well, he was a Nexus-6 so we don’t know how long he can live. And that’s all I’m going to say at this stage.” Bringing back an aging Ford to reprise the part of Rick Deckard, all but erases the theory that the blade runner is actually a replicant, unless he is an unknown version that actually survives past the four-year lifespan.
CHiPs
TBD
Conan the Barbarian
2016
The Legend of Conan is the third film in the Arnold Schwarzenegger franchise and will be a direct sequel to the original, bypassing Conan the Destroyer and the 2011 remake. Slated to begin production in the spring of 2015, this will be Schwarzenegger’s seventh film since leaving the California Governor’s chair.
Escape from New York
TBD
A remake of the John Carpenter classic has been in development since 2007. At one time, Scottish actor Gerard Butler was attached with producer Neal Moritz and writer Ken Nolan. New Line Cinema acquired the rights from StudioCanal and Carpenter was hired to serve as an executive producer. Several directors were rumored including Len Wiseman, Brett Ratner, Jonathan Mostow and Breck Eisner. Butler dropped out of the project, soon to be followed by Jeremy Renner, Jason Statham and Tom Hardy.
New Line and Warner Bros. eventually lost interest with the rights later picked up by Joel Silver and his company Silver Pictures and StudioCanal. Silver has stated the remake/reboot will be the first in a trilogy with elements inspired by the video game Batman: Arkham City.
The Evil Dead
TBD
Announced at Comic-Con 2014, Writer/Director Sam Raimi and star Bruce Campbell announced a television series based on The Evil Dead franchise. Campbell will reprise his iconic cult role of Ash for the series.Rumors of an Evil Dead IV and a sequel to the 2013 remake have been shot down by Campbell as “Internet BS.”
Ghostbusters
TBD
“No job is too big, no fee is too big”
A third Ghostbusters has been in development for several years, with head cheerleader/co-writer Dan Aykroyd leading the way on what was once rumored to be a story set around a new team of ghost-fighting scientists with cameos’ from the original cast. The first potential problem was Bill Murray very public lack of enthusiasm for returning. Then the death of Harold Ramis earlier this year leading to original director Ivan Reitman was pulling out of the project, all but silencing any attempt at revisiting the franchise.
Just weeks after Ramis’s death came word from Sony, owner of Ghostbusters that a third installment was still in development. After several drafts from Gene Stupnitsky & Lee Eisenberg, then Aykroyd & Ramis were shelved, Sony approached Phil Lord & Chris Miller from The Lego Movie to tackle the project. After considering Ghostbusters over a couple of weeks, The Lego Movie franchise exploded with more films currently in development, leading Lord & Miller to pull out of the project. The latest word is Bridesmaid director Paul Feig will lead an all-female Ghostbusters film, slated to begin production sometime in 2015. No word is this is a direct sequel or a clean reboot.
The Goonies
TBD
A sequel to the 1985 film The Goonies has been on and off again for several years. The film’s owner, Warner Bros. has shown little interest in a sequel. On April 5, 2014, Goonies director Richard Donner said a sequel was in development and there was a strong possibility the entire cast will return. Indeed, the entire cast has been very vocal in returning to the “Goon Docks” neighborhood of Astoria, Oregon.
The Greatest American Hero
TBD
Believe it or not, someone is rebooting this lost TV series.
Fox Network has ordered a pilot of The Greatest American Hero in August 2014 that will be co-produced by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, best known as the writer/director duo that developed The Lego Movie. Rodney Rothman, the scribe for 22 Jump Street, will be writing the script and act as executive producer along with Tawnia McKiernan and Seth Cohen. McKiernan is the daughter of series creator Stephen J. Cannell.
The original comedy/drama series ran on ABC for three seasons, 1981-1983. Created by producer Cannell, the series starred William Katt as teacher Ralph Hinkey (later Hanley) who starts wearing a red superhero suit given to him by aliens that give him superhuman abilities. The problem: Ralph almost immediately loses the suit’s instruction manual, leading to many hi-jinks as he tries to navigate around in the bright red outfit. The series also starred ex-I-Spy Robert Culp and future Mrs. John Tesh, Connie Sellecca.
PAGE 2
Return to the 1980's: Franchises in Production
Ron Seifried | On 02, Sep 2014
Time to break out the florescent clothing, leg warmers, Members Only Jackets and piano-key neckties. Hollywood is looking to the 1980’s for source material to develop projects for film and television in the current era of franchises, and we the audience, will be the unwitting recipients of dated content that producers will proclaim are “fresh” takes on old stories. Instead of actual fresh ideas that apparently are no longer viable options in the 21st century. This monumental shift far outnumbers the total number of remakes and reboots the industry produced in the 80’s. Looking back in the decade of Ronald Reagan, the franchise movement was just taking shape, keeping firmly enmeshed in the present with one, maybe two sequels within five years of an original picture. Television spinoffs were more of a fad of the 1970’s, with original programming dominating in the 80’s. Almost 30 franchises are in some level of development today that traces their origins to the 1980’s. That’s more than one 80’s-based form of visual entertainment per month over the next three years. Here is a current list of an ever expanding number of sequels, reboots and remakes expected to grace movie and TV screens in the coming years.
Beetlejuice
TBD
Warner Bros. hired Seth Grahame-Smith to write a screenplay that director Tim Burton is apparently happy with, who’s spoken to star Michael Keaton, guaranteeing Winona Ryder’s return. The pieces are in place, the long-gestating sequel just needs a start date.
Beverly Hills Cop
March 2016
The return of Detroit fish-out-water cop Axel Foley has been in discussion since the mid-1990′s. Franchise star Eddie Murphy has stated his main motivation in returning to the series was the third film was “horrible” and he didn’t “want to leave the series like that.”
Director Brett Ratner has been attached to the project since 2008, working off several different drafts of the script. At one time during the pre-production phase, Murphy stated the film would not be happening, and instead was developing a TV series with CBS based on Foley’s son Aaron. A pilot was shot with Brandon T. Jackson as Foley, and Kevin Pollak, and David Denam rounding out the cast, but CBS eventually passed .
Eddie Murphy said in a recent Rolling Stone interview, “I haven’t done a street guy, working class, blue-collar character in ages so maybe it’s like, ‘Oh, wow, I didn’t remember he was able to do that.” Beverly Hill Cop IV is now a go, coming to theaters within two years.
Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure
TBD
“We are all just dust in the wind…dude!”
Despite the fact MGM has yet to greenlight the project, air-guitar aficionados Keanu Reeves and Alex Winter have stated that a script has been completed focusing on the changes Bill and Ted have experienced over the past twenty years. Galaxy Quest director Dean Parisot has signed on to direct a script by original writers Chris Matheson and Ed Solomon.
Blade Runner
TBD
It was announced that Ridley Scott would direct a new Blade Runner sequel and after several delays, it appears it may happen within the next couple of years, depending on when Scott fits in the Prometheus sequel. “It’s not a rumor—it’s happening. With Harrison Ford? I don’t know yet. Is he too old? Well, he was a Nexus-6 so we don’t know how long he can live. And that’s all I’m going to say at this stage.” Bringing back an aging Ford to reprise the part of Rick Deckard, all but erases the theory that the blade runner is actually a replicant, unless he is an unknown version that actually survives past the four-year lifespan.
CHiPs
TBD
The old NBC show about the California Highway Patrol is about to hit the big screen. On September 2, 2014, Warner Bros. announced a film adaptation of the show Andrew Panay would be producing along with Dax Shepard who will also write, direct and star in the film as Officer Jon Baker, Michael Peña will play Frank “Ponch” Poncherello.
Conan the Barbarian
2016
The Legend of Conan is the third film in the Arnold Schwarzenegger franchise and will be a direct sequel to the original, bypassing Conan the Destroyer and the 2011 remake. Slated to begin production in the spring of 2015, this will be Schwarzenegger’s seventh film since leaving the California Governor’s chair.
Escape from New York
TBD
A remake of the John Carpenter classic has been in development since 2007. At one time, Scottish actor Gerard Butler was attached with producer Neal Moritz and writer Ken Nolan. New Line Cinema acquired the rights from StudioCanal and Carpenter was hired to serve as an executive producer. Several directors were rumored including Len Wiseman, Brett Ratner, Jonathan Mostow and Breck Eisner. Butler dropped out of the project, soon to be followed by Jeremy Renner, Jason Statham and Tom Hardy.
New Line and Warner Bros. eventually lost interest with the rights later picked up by Joel Silver and his company Silver Pictures and StudioCanal. Silver has stated the remake/reboot will be the first in a trilogy with elements inspired by the video game Batman: Arkham City.
The Evil Dead
TBD
Announced at Comic-Con 2014, Writer/Director Sam Raimi and star Bruce Campbell announced a television series based on The Evil Dead franchise. Campbell will reprise his iconic cult role of Ash for the series.Rumors of an Evil Dead IV and a sequel to the 2013 remake have been shot down by Campbell as “Internet BS.”
Ghostbusters
TBD
“No job is too big, no fee is too big”
A third Ghostbusters has been in development for several years, with head cheerleader/co-writer Dan Aykroyd leading the way on what was once rumored to be a story set around a new team of ghost-fighting scientists with cameos’ from the original cast. The first potential problem was Bill Murray very public lack of enthusiasm for returning. Then the death of Harold Ramis earlier this year leading to original director Ivan Reitman was pulling out of the project, all but silencing any attempt at revisiting the franchise.
Just weeks after Ramis’s death came word from Sony, owner of Ghostbusters that a third installment was still in development. After several drafts from Gene Stupnitsky & Lee Eisenberg, then Aykroyd & Ramis were shelved, Sony approached Phil Lord & Chris Miller from The Lego Movie to tackle the project. After considering Ghostbusters over a couple of weeks, The Lego Movie franchise exploded with more films currently in development, leading Lord & Miller to pull out of the project. The latest word is Bridesmaid director Paul Feig will lead an all-female Ghostbusters film, slated to begin production sometime in 2015. No word is this is a direct sequel or a clean reboot.
The Goonies
TBD
A sequel to the 1985 film The Goonies has been on and off again for several years. The film’s owner, Warner Bros. has shown little interest in a sequel. On April 5, 2014, Goonies director Richard Donner said a sequel was in development and there was a strong possibility the entire cast will return. Indeed, the entire cast has been very vocal in returning to the “Goon Docks” neighborhood of Astoria, Oregon.
The Greatest American Hero
TBD
Believe it or not, someone is rebooting this lost TV series.
Fox Network has ordered a pilot of The Greatest American Hero in August 2014 that will be co-produced by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, best known as the writer/director duo that developed The Lego Movie. Rodney Rothman, the scribe for 22 Jump Street, will be writing the script and act as executive producer along with Tawnia McKiernan and Seth Cohen. McKiernan is the daughter of series creator Stephen J. Cannell.
The original comedy/drama series ran on ABC for three seasons, 1981-1983. Created by producer Cannell, the series starred William Katt as teacher Ralph Hinkey (later Hanley) who starts wearing a red superhero suit given to him by aliens that give him superhuman abilities. The problem: Ralph almost immediately loses the suit’s instruction manual, leading to many hi-jinks as he tries to navigate around in the bright red outfit. The series also starred ex-I-Spy Robert Culp and future Mrs. John Tesh, Connie Sellecca.
PAGE 2
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