News regarding upcoming remakes of well-regarded films always tends to spark debate over the merits of rehashing old material, but what about remakes of remakes?
20th Century Fox is reportedly planning another adaptation of The Fly, the short story that originated in a 1957 issue of Playboy and inspired both a 1958 film written and directed by Kurt Neumann and director David Cronenberg’s 1986 remake.
Deadline reports that filmmaker J.D. Dillard, whose upcoming drama Sleight will be his directorial debut, is currently attached to direct the remake of The Fly. Dillard will reportedly co-write the script with collaborator Alex Theurer.
The original short story penned by George Langelaan chronicled the demise of a scientist who invents a device capable of teleporting matter from one pod to another. When he attempts to teleport himself, he accidentally ends up having his genetic material merged with that of a housefly, and begins a terrible transformation into a human-fly hybrid.
Neumann’s 1958 film inspired by the story starred David Hedison, Patricia Owens, and horror icon Vincent Price, and spawned two sequels: 1959’s Return of the Fly and 1965’s Curse of the Fly.
Nearly 30 years later, Cronenberg remade Neumann’s film with Jeff Goldblum and Geena Davis, and the movie ended up winning an Academy Award for its gruesome makeup effects. The film remains the most successful movie of Cronenberg’s career, earning $60.6 million worldwide with a production cost of just $9 million. The 1986 film also spawned a sequel, 1989’s The Fly II, which was directed by makeup effects artist Chris Walas and was considerably less successful than its predecessor.
Dillard’s upcoming film Sleight follows a brilliant street magician in Los Angeles who must use his wits and sleight of hand to save his sister after he gets caught up in a feud between rival drug dealers. The film generated positive buzz at the Sundance Film Festival and will hit theaters outside the festival circuit April 28.
There’s no word on when Dillard’s remake of The Fly will begin production.
