You wouldn’t think a Spaghetti Western would end up being one of the most heavily-franchised films of all-time, but 1966’s classic Django has somehow ended up spawning more than 30 unofficial sequels that do little more than repurpose the name in an attempt to attach themselves to the original.
In fairness, it did work a treat when Quentin Tarantino incorporated several notable elements and motifs – as well as a cameo from star Franco Nero – in Django Unchained, but the small screen remake that sought to paint the established story in a brand new light did not fare quite as well.
A 38 approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes and a weak 4.4/10 score on IMDb make it look as though the latest reinvention of Django was a failed experiment, but Netflix subscribers in various territories will be able to make up their own minds next month when it comes to the platform in certain markets on Oct. 1, including the United States.
Matthias Schoenaerts and Noomi Rapace are incredibly talented stars, but not even their combined might could elevate the do-over into anything approaching entertaining television. In their defense, it’s far from the worst project in the world bearing the Django branding, but on the other hand that’s not really saying an awful lot when there’s so damned many of them seeping out of cinema’s very pores.
There’s a distinctly high chance it’ll end up as one of the most popular titles on Netflix in the immediate aftermath of its debut, but it won’t be sticking in the memory quite like the OG.