Remakes are all the rage right now, and there are plenty of sci-fi and fantasy films from the past that can use one!
Hollywood has always had an affinity for remakes, but it's really picked up in recent years. That includes Disney’s live-action adaptations of their past animated movies, with Dreamworks following suit with How To Train Your Dragon. There’s also word of plans for remakes of Starship Troopers, among others.
Of course, some folks are worried about remaking a beloved film, as we’ve seen a lot of crummy examples over the years. There are many sci-fi/fantasy movies that should never be remade, from classics like Forbidden Planet to cult favorites such as The Last Starfighter.
But there are also many sci-fi and fantasy movies that could benefit from a remake. The originals are good, but they could use better effects, actors, and storytelling. These are 15 sci-fi and fantasy movies screaming to be remade:
1. Doc Savage
Without Doc Savage, most sci-fi and superhero adventures as we know it wouldn’t exist. The Man of Bronze was the star of the 1930s-50s pulp novel period. He got a movie in 1975, but it wasn't as good as it should have been. It’s more than past time for a new version that sends this super-genius strongman and his Famous Five on a fantastic adventure.
The 1930s setting would be wonderful. We'd see Doc’s brilliance at work as he uses his inventions to get himself and his team out of jams. This pioneer of modern adventure is long overdue to be discovered by a new generation.
2. Flash Gordon
The 1980 Flash Gordon movie is a guilty pleasure. Fans love the camp aspects, the performances of Brian Blessed and Max von Sydow and the awesome rock score by Queen. That ignores how it doesn’t quite do right by one of the most important characters in sci-fi history.
A modern take can still capture the story's humor — it's about a football quarterback who rallies the beleaguered people of a distant planet against a tyrant, after all — while offering a far better look at the planet Mongo. The right star as Flash would make it a gem. The music would be tricky to handle, yet Flash Gordon deserves another shot with a modern audience so it can become more than just a cult classic.
3. Demon Seed
This is a movie that was so ahead of its time that it’s shockingly relevant today. The 1977 film is about a scientist crafting an artificial intelligence that he puts into his house. Codenamed Proteus, the AI soon targets the scientist's wife, holding her hostage with the intention of impregnating her with a new lifeform.
With “smart houses” so commonplace today, the horror aspects are more immediate; it's easier these days to imagine a house turning on its owners. A remake could also flesh out the main character of Susan and make her more than just a damsel in distress, while pushing the technological terror far deeper. It can be like the 2020 version of Invisible Man, another remake that became a modern feminist horror film for the ages.
4. When Worlds Collide
There’s always been a fascination with sci-fi disaster movies, but somehow, we’ve yet to get a remake of the film that started the whole trend. From master producer George Pal, this 1951 film is about a rogue star about to destroy the planet Earth. A conflict grows between a pack of scientists trying to stop it and others who want to put together an “ark” to save as much of humanity as they can.
Obviously, a modern take can offer some wonderful special effects, but also update the theme of how modern society responds when the world is facing an existential threat. A remake could still have the competing races — one to stop the rogue star and the other to build the "ark" — and the social discussions about who deserves to be saved.
5. Johnny Mnemonic
Before The Matrix, Keanu Reeves took on a cyberpunk adventure in this 1995 sci-fi film that was a miserable failure at the box office. Looking back, maybe it was just ahead of the curve. Reeves played the title role of a courier in a future society who carries secret data in a special storage device in his head. That cost him childhood memories and he’s trying to get enough money to buy them back.
Johnny gets the classic “one last job that goes horribly wrong” mission that leads to chaos. The movie would be far better today, since a world dominated by AI and computers seems a lot more possible now. Reeves himself could still play the role, and we would finally have a version of the movie that does the story justice.
6. Dark Star
Best known as John Carpenter’s debut movie, Dark Star didn’t make much of an impact in 1974, but it has a faithful audience now. The plot is unique and follows the the crew of a rundown spaceship that destroys unstable planets that can harm Earth’s colonization efforts. The movie is a dark comedy. The crew dealing with a broken down ship and “intelligent” bombs that soon cause problems.
A modern take can amp up the sardonic comedy elements with better FX and actors who can play the material well. If Carpenter himself could be involved, it’d be even better. Either way, a black comedy take on a Star Trek-style adventure would be a delight for those who like their sci-fi weird and wild.
7. The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen
Alan Moore’s comic book was seemingly perfect for a big-screen adaptation: an Avengers-like team made up of Victorian heroes such as Captain Nemo, Alan Quartermain, Mr. Hyde, and the Invisible Man going up against a series of equally iconic baddies. The 2003 movie adaptation was a mess despite starring Sean Connery (in his final role), marred by bad effects and writing.
The concept is screaming to be remade in a movie that sticks much closer to the original comic, with maybe a couple more Victorian characters thrown in. It’d be cooler to adapt the second volume where they face off against the Martians from War of the Worlds and other tales. The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen remains a terrific idea for an adventure story that should be redeemed with a faithful take.
8. Outland
In between being James Bond and his Oscar win for The Untouchables, Sean Connery had a lot of mostly forgettable films. Among them was 1981’s Outland, which was basically a space-set version of the iconic Western High Noon. Connery was the Gary Cooper-like lead, the marshal on the moon of Io who oversees the mining operations there.
Connery stumbles onto a murder linked to a darker conspiracy and finds himself on his own, trying to get at the truth. A remake could build out the space age environment, while a new lead can be tougher and involved in more action. A space western is always a compelling idea, and while trying to follow Connery is difficult, this could be a great new adaptation.
9. The Blob
There was a 1988 remake of this 1950s tale, which was the rare case of the remake being better than the original. Both work well thanks to the titular threat, a shapeless creature that grows the more it consumes. The 1988 version had horrific scenes that were more impressive before the CGI era.
With today’s FX, the Blob can be bigger and badder, picking people off with its tentacles and rolling over everything in sight. This is a classic movie monster which deserves a comeback.
10. Krull
This 1983 British fantasy film is best known for a young Liam Neeson and a beautiful James Horner score. They're both better than the actual film, which mixes sci-fi and fantasy as a Game of Thrones-like kingdom is invaded by creatures from the stars. A young prince survives a massacre to rescue his princess with the aid of a wise mentor, a bumbling wizard and a pack of escaped prisoners.
The movie boasts an awesome weapon called the Glaive and cool designs for the Slayers and their boss, the Beast. The movie was held back by rough effects and acting. A remake could turn this into a bigger franchise and do a better job of mixing genres, which was an intriguing idea that didn't quite work in the original.
11. Dreamscape
This 1984 movie explores the always-promising idea of being able to enter dreams. Dennis Quaid plays a psychic who uses his gift for gambling and womanizing. He’s recruited into a secret government project that lets people access dreams only to discover someone wants to use it to kill people in their dreams.
Inception proved moviegoers can enjoy a good story about exploring someone else's subconscious. A remake of Dreamscape would lean even harder on the thriller aspects. Modern special effects would make these worlds more exciting. A remake of this saga would be a dream come true for fans of this cult film.
12. Fantastic Voyage
There have been scores of attempts to remake this 1966 sci-fi classic over the decades, with creators as varied as Roland Emmerich, Paul Greengrass, Guillermo Del Toro, and most recently, James Cameron all claiming to be working on it. It’s easy to see why, thanks to the great concept of a small ship of scientists shrunken down to explore a human body.
Not only would the FX be better in a remake, but we know far more about human biology than we did then, so the film can be more realistic. The movie could show how dangerous the human body can be. Under the right direction, the Voyage can be even better in modern times.
13. The Black Hole
This 1979 Disney film was supposed to be the company’s Star Wars but failed to live up to expectations. It has gained a following anyway. It's about space explorers who find a ship whose Captain Nemo-like leader (Maximilian Schell) plans to explore a massive black hole. There's also a horrifying truth about the ship’s crew, but we won't give away everything.
The movie boasts one of the most awesome movie robots ever in Maxmillian, and the ship is forebodingly creepy to this day. A new version can have cooler special effects and more effective robots. It could also alter the wild ending for a more cohesive finish. It’s one space journey many would gladly take again.
14. The Black Cauldron
The Black Cauldron is seen today as a low point for Disney animation. The 1985 film was a huge flop that set the animated division back years. Too bad, as the Chronicles of Prydain novels have everything needed to become an excellent movie franchise. This fantasy series combines a young hero, a feisty princess, some great funny characters and a few dark villains like the Horned King into a fine read.
Disney can do great things with the property in a remake, this time truly adapting the novels rather than mixing elements together. The actual Cauldron and Horned King tales can be done better in live-action than animation, even if a CGI animated film would be great, too. It’s a shame that Disney hasn’t given this property another shot.
15. Logan’s Run
Another movie remake stuck in development hell, it’s little wonder filmmakers are interested in a new take on this 1976 film. It’s set in the far future of 2274, where there's a seemingly utopian society full of young attractive people. Whenever one hits the age of 30, they’re selected for “the Carousel,” which they think is a rejuvenation process. It’s really killing them to keep the population down.
When Logan discovers the truth, he goes on the run. The movie has become a cult favorite over the decades, and its themes about our obsession with youth and a culture dominated by AI would be more relevant now than ever. There are action scenes that would look much better today.
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