As we continue to live in an era populated by remakes, there’s no denying that the horror genre is probably the one most often perpetuating the practice – and probably also the one we have to thank for spearheading the movement. Beyond that, there’s an exclusive club of films that have been remade more than once, with Carrie being a recent example that comes to mind and, before long, The Blob will join that ilk.
Originally spooking moviegoers back in 1958, the corrosive, growing Blob would absorb unsuspecting townsfolk before ballooning to gigantic proportions. It later received a 1972 sequel and a 1988 remake, the latter of which was probably my first exposure to the franchise because, let’s be honest, any child of the ’80s can tell you we watched many movies that we probably shouldn’t have as kids. Hell, we even had action figures for RoboCop and Terminator 2: Judgment Day, but I digress.
With Simon West’s re-remake now gaining steam, we’re beginning to learn more about it and according to the director himself, it’s set to be more of a sci-fi pic than a horror one. Speaking to The Popcorn Muncher, here’s what he had to say:
“The Blob is one of the things I would like to make, and part of my reinvention is to make it more sci-fi than horror. Actually, sci-fi is my favorite genre even though I’ve never made a sci-fi film.”
In a separate interview, West admitted that he doesn’t actually know when he’ll get around to putting the project together, as he’s still unsure of what he’s doing next.
“I am not sure what I am doing next, but I would eventually like to make The Blob. I am usually working on 3 or 4 things at once in the development stage, but I never know which one will bubble to the top first.”
As far as casting goes, we’ve already heard that Samuel L. Jackson has clinched a role and that Halle Berry may be on board, too. However, what’s interesting to note is that Swengroup, one of the distributors on the project, doesn’t mention Jackson in their listing of the film, only the aforementioned actress. Given that the Pulp Fiction star was first announced for the remake two years ago, it’s entirely possible that he’s not involved anymore, but at this point, we can’t say for sure.
Regardless, it sounds like it’s still pretty early days for The Blob, but tell us, are you disappointed to hear that West intends on going sci-fi instead of horror with this one? Do let us know.
