Coming Up!
A lot more repackaged plotlines are well on their way to screens, complete with big casts and stunning special effects. The Lemony Snickets series of quirky children's books comes to life with Jim Carrey, while Harry Potter might meet his match in the deeper, deadlier Dark Materials Trilogy.
Tolkien enjoyed such a revival with Peter Jackson, there are rumours of an animated feature based on the prequel, The Hobbit, while the director himself explores a remake of King Kong, featuring Naomi Watts and Adrien Brody.
Fans of British humour find themselves torn between which clearly disastrous adaptation to woefully lament more: The Douglas Adams classic, The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy, with Sam Rockwell and hip-hop artist Mos Def; or the 2005 prequel to Peter Sellers' immortal Pink Panther series, featuring Steve Martin and Beyonce. *Shudder*
Every actor worth his millions is entering a comic book, from Tom (Iron Man) Cruise to Nicolas (Ghost Rider) Cage, and the new Superman is being hunted down as you read this.
As is the new James Bond, the franchise that simply refuses to die, especially as Quentin Tarantino has expressed interest in making the next feature. His idea? A remake (!) of the 1967 Casino Royale. In all marketing-savvy probability, expect a 2:007 release.
Finally, in a moment we can all feel proud of, Twentieth Century Fox has optioned the rights to a remake of our very own Munnabhai MBBS, to feature Chris Rock and called Gangster MD. Early days yet, but it's a definite start.