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I’m sure many people are sick and tired of reboots. You see them of movies, tv shows, comics, video games, and even books being rewritten from another perspective. I’d like to say a reboot was something special, but I can’t remember those days. Did those days ever exist?
They probably did when reboots were made of very old franchises that were beloved and there was a call for them to come back. These shows managed to keep the heart and much of the lore of the original, but add some modern takes on it. You didn’t see a mangling of the source material or a blatant attempt to push a different story under a popular name. Sure, they could have all been cash grabs, but there was a time when it felt less obvious and there was at least some effort put into it. Now, it’s a reboot solely to make money and hope the original fans will accept anything while new fans are drawn in. This is part of the reason fandoms splinter these days. No balance.
Movies seem to be where this is extremely egregious. I recently read that they’re rebooting the ‘Naked Gun’ franchise. Liam Neeson is going to play Frank Drebin, who was originally played by Leslie Nielson. This is a legendary comedy movie for anyone born in the 80’s and 90’s, so it’s rough thinking that it gets a reboot. Makes one wonder why or is it really all about money. You can make a good argument about the creative bankruptcy of modern culture with stuff like this too. I’d put some of the blame on audiences still buying the half-assed reboots even when complaining too. Money talks more than words when it comes to these industries.
Perhaps one of the biggest issues with modern reboot trends is that they’re coming in fast and mediocre. We’re already seeing reboots of franchises from barely a decade ago or even less. This doesn’t make any sense to me. Not enough time has passed for people to really cool off on the originals. In fact, it seems to increase the chances of fans being upset because now the version they like could be considered obsolete. If you wait at least 20 years, you have a better chance of the older fans being okay with a new version since the one they started on has been firmly established in history. Then again, the people behind these things don’t really care about the current fans and seem to be more interested in having their own, personal slice of the fandom pie.
Sometimes, these reboots are hidden as prequels too. You can tell the difference if the added stuff honors and builds on the originals or if it creates tons of plot holes for both storylines. I’m sure people know exactly, which reboot disguised as a prequel I’m thinking of. This tactic gets my blood boiling a bit.
The only time I think a reboot could really, really help is when it’s being done with a bad movie. I’ve seen this suggested on forums a bunch and I agree. A story that was good, but done poorly should have a chance at a reboot. Fans would like to see their story get the treatment they feel it deserves and newer people will be interested. You give new life to a story that simply had bad luck with writers, actors, directors, etc. Of course, this could backfire if people think it’s a good idea to push the bad version out before the new one, which would turn new fans off. I say this because I remember the newer Judge Dredd movie with Carl Urban got hurt by the Sylvester Stallone one being shown all over TV before it’s release. Many of my friends said they weren’t going to try the new movie because they felt it would be the same. It wasn’t and I really liked it. Guess everything can be undone by bad decisions.
Anyway, what do other people think of reboots? Tired of them or love them?
Legends of Windemere 
I don’t mind a reboot if, as you said, it does a much better job of conveying the story than the previous movie/show/book did. But lately, I haven’t liked some of the reboots or sequels that come after a well-beloved wrap-up of a trilogy. Like the story seemed to be over with the trilogy, but nope! Here is a fourth movie that almost singlehandedly tarnishes the memory of the trilogy. With some reboots, I wonder if a studio is trying to hang on to the IP in an attempt to extend the copyright or assigned rights.
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I’m feeling the same. You might be right about studios holding onto the rights. Maybe trying to squeeze a last bit of money out of the franchise too.
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There must be many talented screen writers out there who can bring us new stories. I avoid reboots.
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Definitely. Makes one wonder why people would go into the field, especially with AI out there too.
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I have yet to see a reboot that was a good as the original. Maybe it’s me but an original classic should be left alone. Rebooting Naked Gun is going to be a mess since the original was so good.
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I think reboots that change stuff to fit a new generation have better luck. Keep the heart and update the tech, world, etc. The Oceans movies and Italian Job kind of did that.
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Yeah that’s true.
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I agree about those franchises. I preferred the newer Italian Job to the original (though it was good). I never saw Oceans 8. But I saw the ones with Brad Pitt and George Clooney. So good! Never saw the original Oceans movie.
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Never saw the original Oceans too. Oceans 8 wasn’t that bad. Ended up being a loose sequel instead of a reboot though.
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I agree. A classic is a classic for a reason.
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Thanks, Viv. 😊
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I think many “creative” companies are full-on fans of rebooting, recreating, reimagining, repurposing any and all previously proven entities. It is the safe play for media corporations who don’t have a problem soiling the legacy of the original work in order to put more black on the ledger sheet. Obviously, they are in business to make profits, but some of these recreations are so badly done…and as noted already there are a bunch of writers “in waiting” for a chance to spin new stories and create new franchises. Great post.
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Feels like they aren’t getting as much black in their ledgers as they used to. Hope it means things will change.
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I don’t enjoy most “reboots” and would rather see original material.
One that I did enjoy was the Ghostbusters reboot that gender flipped the cast. All the female leads were great, and Chris Hemsworth as the secretary showed us he is really a great comic actor.
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Feels like original material is rare these days.
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If it’s done to better a movie because of poor story or something, I think it’s fine. Or if it’s to further a story (like Futurama) while keeping the original intact, that is ok. But rebooting a movie or something that is fine as is or is considered a classic and doesn’t need it (like The Princess Bride), then it should be hands off.
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I’ve heard about a Princess Bride reboot. Scary.
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It is scary. It definitely doesn’t need one.
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Tired of them, Charles, especially when they are a poor image of the first outing. I think Dune is the exception. As for the Naked Gun reboot – the humor is not going to fly today!
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It’s a shame that kind of humor can’t work anymore.
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Personally, I hate them. A lot of it is about intellectual property. We already own X, so why pay Charles for a Windemere franchise? Many of these classics worked, because times were different. Noelle pointed out the comedy from Naked Gun as one example. They’re even re-editing some classics to take out scenes that are insensitive to modern audiences. I first noticed it with a James Caan scene in an old John Wayne movie. It used to be a trickle of remakes, but now it seems like the majority of things produced are remakes, reboots, prequels, etc. I’ve seen ads recently for The Fall Guy. I used to watch the Lee Majors version.
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I think they try for built-in fanbases too. They figure those people will go to the movie no matter the quality. At least they’d go once. So they appeal to non-fans.
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