HOME TRAILERS RELEASE DATES PODCASTS REVIEWS POSTERS INTERVIEWS BOB $TENCIL NEWS FEEDS ABOUT APPS

LATEST NEWS

J. Michael Straczynski Provides an Update on Forbidden Planet

by Alex Billington
November 24, 2009
Source: Collider

You know what project we haven't heard about in a while? That Forbidden Planet remake J. Michael Straczynski was writing for Joel Silver! Let's not forget that rumor from last year that James Cameron was going to direct. But who can we go to for an update? How about J. Michael Straczynski himself! Collider caught up with the screenwriter at the press junket for Ninja Assassin (which he co-wrote) and asked him about a whole bunch of projects he's been working on, but the most interesting updates he gave were for Forbidden Planet. He's talked about it before, but this time was asked how faithful it'll be to the original.

"I think if you're a fan of the original as I am and have always been, I think it's very faithful to that. We've actually decided to show more of the first ship when it first arrived 20 years earlier to sort of counterpoint what's happening in the present story. But Warners is very excited about it, thinks it's a big franchise for them and a huge budget, so they're very much oriented toward getting it done.

Straczynski was also asked if he's added a lot more action to the story beyond what's in the original movie.

"There's a little more action but it's still a strong character piece because it's based on The Tempest and the idea of a father whose daughter is being courted by, in the original play, sailors that are washed up on shore. You need to have that dynamic still in place to respect the original and the source material. So there's a fair amount of talking but there's some really cool action pieces in it as well."

So Warner Brothers wants this Forbidden Planet remake to be the start of a big, new franchise? They better have learned from the mistakes Fox made on The Day the Earth Stood Still, since the remake didn't fare too well. As long as they find a good director and keep tweaking that script to perfection, I think we'll be fine. I loved what Straczynski said about his version last year and I'm still excited for this, mainly because I'm a big sci-fi nut and I've still got faith in Straczynski as a screenwriter. I like what he's saying here as well, but I'm just waiting to hear about who is directing this before I get too excited for it. Any idea who it might be?

Explore tags: Hype, Movie News, Opinions

Ballyhoo

Frank Darabont was set to remake this movie at one point..
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Up_in_the_Air_(film) Dan Dassow

Alex, if you are interested in asking JMS (AKA J. Michael Straczynski) questions, you might consider joining the moderated USENET group rec.arts.sf.tv.babylon5.moderated and post your questions there. The convention is to use "Attn JMS:" at the beginning of a thread title when asking a question. The charter for the group is rather simple: "No story ideas and be civil". Mr. Straczynski frequently breaks news of projects on this USENET group.
cornholio_by_the_sea

I certainly hope they stay faithful to the original... They absolutely MUST keep Robbie the Robot as he was ....maybe with a few tune ups but stilll the same pyhsical appearance...
David Banner

Why make a remake....sigh....and wtf does he mean with "...thinks it's a big franchise for them" ???
Fed Up With Hollywood

Another frikkin' remake of a classic. NO! I say we take off and nuke Hollywood from orbit. It's the only way to be sure...
http://rustednuts.blogspot.com D. D. Tannenbaum

FRANCHISE? They blew the damn Krell planet up at the end! Do they find more? Or do they find that pieces of radioactive Krellnite do strange things to people. Lets reboot Hollywood! They are also doing Dune for the THIRD time!!!! Lets get some fresh blood in there (And I DON'T mean Twilight!!!
docsman

I'm with you guys on stopping this remake movement. I've always rejected the notion that a movie needs to be updated for each new generation. The movies are classics because they were done by the best of the best and/or because they captured a sense of the times that cannot be expressed the same by a remake. Rollerball is a prime example: it had a big star with a big director, but it also expressed the dystopic view of the future that many people had in the early and mid-70s. You could not reproduce or recapture the feelings on both sides of the camera 20 years later and were left with a pile of steaming dung that no fan of the original would go near. If they're going to insist on doing remakes, I'd rather they follow SciFi Channel's lead and do reimaginings. Taking the Wizard of Oz and making it into Tinman doesn't tread on the original classic while allowing a connection to it that doesn't offend most fans. There's nothing wrong with a retelling in a different manner or form, but don't call it exactly the same and use the same characters running around in CGIland with a plot from the Mom's basement school of sci-fi. On that note, I hear they're going to remake Total Recall. It just doesn't end.
Robert

C'mon guy's lighten up. Yes I'm sick of hollywood too, but give Straczynski a chance. His talent is tried & true. It might be worth a go. Remember LOTR was a remake also & Peter Jackson did a bang up job on it. (King Kong???,,,,,well,,,, that's another story.)
Roger McMillian

FRANCHISE? They blew the damn Krell planet up at the end! Do they find more? Or do they find that pieces of radioactive Krellnite do strange things to people. Lets reboot Hollywood! They are also doing Dune for the THIRD time!!!! Lets get some fresh blood in there (And I DON'T mean Twilight!!! BUT... The Krell had visited many planets in their travels. Whose to say they didn't have an outpost on another world... and that some remnants of the Krell civilization survived the Altair IV holocaust?