Whether they like it or not, horror fans have seen plenty of their favorite titles remade for a new generation, including Dawn of the Dead, Halloween, The Hills Have Eyes, and Nightmare on Elm Street. Now that Hollywood has worked its way through the most celebrated works in the genre, it must look to the cult canon in search of new material — and, recently, two films are rumored to nab new versions.
In the slasher category, Deadline reports that former Fox and New Line executive Jeff Katz wants to produce his own take on the 1983 hit, Sleepaway Camp. Directed by Robert Hiltzik, the selection — which follows a shy teen girl whose arrival at a summer camp sets off a string of murders — delivered plenty of the usual gore, but set itself apart with an unforgettable twist ending. Its popularity led to a number of sequels released over the course of three decades. Katz optioned the rights from Sleepaway Camp’s main producers, writer-director Hiltzik, Michele Tatosian, and lead actress Felissa Rose. This trio will produce alongside Katz, and plan to deliver a reboot that stays true to both the original film’s legacy and “psychosexual elements.”
Paramount is also rumored to revisit a classic supernatural creeper, and a director is already circling the project. According to Variety, horror helmer Juan Carlos Fresnadillo (28 Weeks Later, Intruders) is in talks to tackle a remake of the 1989 film Pet Sematary; if hired, he’ll take on a script by Matt Greenberg and David Kajganich. Directed by Mary Lambert, the original adaptation of Stephen King’s bestselling novel follows a grieving father who unleashes evil on his small town after burying his son in a cursed graveyard. King also wrote the screenplay, even playing a small role in the film.
Lorenzo di Bonaventura will produce the remake along with Steven Schneider.
Do you think Sleepaway Camp and Pet Sematary are due for remakes?