Why Are There So Many Remakes?? (besides $$$) | Idea Channel | PBS Digital Studios

ANOTHER Fantastic Four movie???

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Fantastic Four, Jurassic World, The Hulk, Star Trek, Spiderman… is it just me or does it seem like remakes are EVERYWHERE? And not only that, but it seems like some movies are just sequel bait, deliberately leaving their ends open to ensure we return to the theaters a year from now to catch the second half of a story we thought we were getting the whole version of. What’s up with that? Besides financial reasons, why are there so many remakes? Does Simon Pegg have the answer? Or maybe our grumpy friend Jean Baudrillard! Watch this week’s episode of PBS Idea Channel with Mike Rugnetta to find out!

The separate Comments Video:

SOURCES:

The Droid You're Looking For Infographic

Simon Pegg Blog Post

A Brief and Canny Explanation for the Flood of Remakes and Sequels

Remakes And Sequels: Have We Reached Overload Yet?

Remakes Keep Flopping, But Here Are 4 Reasons Why Hollywood Still Makes Them

Full House, Coach, The X-Files: Why TV Remakes Are Everywhere Right Now

Why Hollywood Is Producing So Many Damn Remakes

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[OrangeHand]

People complain about things like too many remakes, superhero movies, and Michael Bay movies, yet they almost always make tons of money, so doesn't the problem lie with the audience?

[MxChloeB]

I think the main reason for remakes gaining in the 2000's was the emergence of the internet and broadband. As more people could connect, as more and more sites and forums and the likes started to revolve around one's childhood, as marketing became easier to reach broader audiences, we saw a rise in cashing in on that. They keep remaking things because new generations and old generations converge in a whirl of inquiry and nostalgia. As younger generations wonder why all this old stuff is so popular and older generations reminisce about their childhood books, movies, shows and toys, Hollywood sees the perfect opportunity to bring the two together.

I liken it to comic books, every 10 or so years comic books need a soft reboot or even a hard reboot, in order to draw in new audiences. However they, generally, do no wish to lose older fans so they incorporate the old in a blend with the new.

[theJellyjoker]

I don't think we have too many remakes but not enough new content.

[Trixiethegoldenwitch]

I think this remake culture is more a product of a modern idea that old things just aren't good; that updating something with a modern sensibility inherently implies that there was something wrong with the original in need of update, which inspires people who don't know the original to see the remake. After all, it seems like all of these remakes and adaptations tend to reach vastly larger audiences than their source material or earlier renditions. 

I read a fantastic article at some point (that I wish I could find) about how, particularly in video gaming culture, there's a tendency not to go back and look at older work. It was written by someone who'd been in some kind of teaching scenario in a game design class, and had asked his students how many of them were fans of the Elder Scrolls series--to which they almost all raised their hands--but then, when asking how many had played each game, he found that most had only played the newest one, and none had played the first two. He went on to describe how there seems to be this mentality among gamers that the newest version of a game must be the best and most updated version, which can very often be completely untrue (as the endless horde of game analysts on youtube can attest to).

How much of Man of Steel's audience would look at the 70s films derisively for their cheese factor and primitive production and assume that they must be overall worse movies? How many people watching all those new Marvel movies have read any of the comics whatsoever? (I know I haven't, and I've seen like half of those things). This must contribute to the growth of the international market too, because surely if the 7th film in a series is the first to go worldwide, then that audience is excited because of the reputation and the idea that they get to see the updated version of something they never got to see before.

There's something vaguely dangerous about all of this too, as the aforementioned article was alluding to, where people get so focused on the idea of "modernizing" and "updating" old works that they focus entirely on the tangible details of the work and completely miss the core of what made it good. I'm sure that buried deep inside of Spider Man is a story that actually resonates with people, but by the time we get to Amazing Spider Man 2, it's been buried under every tangible detail of the character's mythos that it possibly could be, and the actual value of the property--the empathetic heart of the matter--has been mostly lost.

[Mastikator]

Liked because you pronounced gif correctly.

[stegwise]

as suggested by Jodorowsky, i'd like to see his vision of _Dune_ brought to life through animation. preferably before he dies.

[SciJoy]

I think remakes hit multiple generations. There are those who have seen the old/original versions and are vested in the story/world. Then there is the younger generation who is being introduced to the story and may not even know the existence of the previous versions. Remakes allow us to look at not only what kind of technology we had at the time we shot a film or made a game, but it can be a snapshot of the culture of the time. Hopefully there is a positive progression in both.

[Xenunnaki]

I feel like the creation of new and original media undermines the appreciation for older media, and that the creation of remakes is a way to allow newer audiences to continue appreciating was was great before. 

Some characters are timeless and deserve to live on forever (like Batman, for instance).

[ornleifs]

We are living in a very boring retro time were nostalgia is the main thing, case in point all those vinyls behind you - YAWN.

[irishman]

The thing about old Hollywood movies is a lot of them back then were pretty much remakes of the same stories and ideas, they just didn't use the same names and characters. But really if you've seen one gangster movie or western from the 40s or 50s, you've seen a good chunk of them. So now they figure if people will notice their movie is a rip off, why not just be up front about it and call it what it is.

[CaptainMonkeyFez]

How do you pronounce potato? poh-TAY-toe _or_ poh-TAH-toe
It doesn't really matter which you choose.
How do you pronounce tomato? toe-MAY-toe _or_ toe-MAH-toe
It doesn't really matter which you choose.
How do you pronounce gif? *Huge flamewar*

[MarshmallowRadiation]

Wow... I could empathetically feel actual, physical pain when Mike said hard-g "gifs."

[MostLikelyMortal]

I feel it's worthwhile stating that there now exists a second generation of adults who experience this "second childhood". These now-college-aged people weren't able to experience the original films/comics/music when they first came out, and I would posit these remakes act as not only a tribute to the originals but as a way for this group to experience the stories firsthand in theaters.

[gwkowe]

Why so many remakes?
I think it's to introduce the younger generation to the things the older generation has grown up with and loved.
Like the original Star Wars trilogy, any kid nowadays would be turned off by those dated effects, so now we need a Force Awakens to show them "See? This is cool!", and celebrate the greatness of Star Wars in all its glory together.

Try to get a kid to watch and enjoy any movie probably before the mid-90's, I'd say more times than not the kid won't be impressed by it since they're so used to the modern feel of today's movies.


For animated movies, yeah remakes aren't as needed, but for certain ones like Cinderella, I say I think the remake was a good idea since the animated movie had outdated ideas/expectations so something needed to be done to make Cinderella appealing again.


Maybe the general idea is: remakes keep movies relevant throughout generations.

[EvanTomiko]

First: $$$
Second: lack of imagination
Third: nostalgia

[gustuvrodrigo]

4:26 CLEVER GIRL! Great math rock band!

[ender]

A remake is sometimes just a safer investment than a bold new idea.

[Quixotic]

You mentioned that one of the reasons these remakes are made is because of the built-in storyline, fan base, etc. But from the consumers' (i.e. our) POV, we consume these remakes for similar reasons. It's less of a gamble for us, as well, to watch a movie or tv show or whatever in which we are already familiar with that universe. Then there's this positive feedback loop that slowly squeezes out original content (at least when it comes to movies). I recently read an article in the New York Times that said Tomorrowland "flopping" will make Hollywood less likely to take a risk on original ideas.

[lovesoup.studio]

I think there is a social aspect to why remakes and sequels are so successful. Casual cinema goers are not especially looking for new content or complicated storytelling. I'd say most people do it as a form of socialising, either by going to the cinemas with friends, or being able to talk about it afterwards. (as oppose to movie enthusiasts who are more interested in the experience of the movie itself) Generally it's much easier to relate to titles everyone is familiar with, say the fast & furious franchise, than an obscure movie that no one has watched before.

[TheFeministBaker]

Don't know if already said. but it's also the first generation of writers who are part of the culture industry. People fell in love with franchises and those growing up to become writers loved the idea of being able to write about a world they already loved. It's what happens with Doctor Who writers so why not also with Trekkies who would love to see more backstory to Captain Kirk?