Eyebrows were raised when Michael B. Jordan was handed the keys to the Rocky franchise at the expense of Sylvester Stallone and tasked to build an expanded Creed universe, but that’s merely the tip of the content iceberg.
Amazon was always going to reinvent a number of properties after acquiring the MGM catalogue, but the sheer volume reported to be in the works by Deadline is nothing if not eye-opening. In addition to the aforementioned Creed, Legally Blonde and Stargate are both under consideration for movies and TV shows, as is RoboCop.
On top of that, TV shows based on Fame, the Barbershop saga, and The Magnificent Seven are all in active development, while The Thomas Crown Affair and Pink Panther are also on the list, and you can be damned sure the company is going to try its damnedest to convince Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli to soften their stance on James Bond never being subjected to any spin-offs or tangential offshoots.
Admittedly, some of the properties listed above wouldn’t be amiss from a fresh coat of paint, but let’s not ignore that we’ve already had a smattering of RoboCop sequels and a remake that all missed the mark, while The Magnificent Seven was itself a remake that’s already been remade, without even mentioning The Thomas Crown Affair getting a do-over once already.
It’s getting pretty nauseating, to be honest, but if Harry Potter isn’t safe from the rampant reinvention that’s defining the streaming circuit, then pretty much nothing can be deemed as completely safe.