RoboCop, Legally Blonde and Stargate are all reportedly in the mix for big – and small – screen reboots, as Amazon works through its MGM catalogue.
Once upon a time, Amazon Studios was best known for backing small, lesser-seen projects like Manchester By The Sea, an approach that has gradually shifted as the company acquired the rights to the MGM library and recently announced it would be putting a billion dollars a year into theatrical distribution.
Thankfully, the studio is still backing grown-up original storytelling, such as Air which is currently in cinemas as we speak. However, the shift towards releasing splashier, crowd-pleasing titles is definitely underway with reports suggesting that Amazon are prepping reboots of three of the bigger titles in its library: RoboCop, Legally Blonde and Stargate.
According to Deadline, that’s just the thin end of the wedge too. There’s apparently around a dozen MGM titles that have been identified as ripe for reworking, and with plenty of cash available for development, we might also be getting modern updates of films like Barbershop, Fame, The Magnificent Seven, Pink Panther and The Thomas Crown Affair.
With regards to RoboCop, Legally Blonde and Stargate, it seems like all three projects may be getting both TV shows and films. Although it’s clearly early days on that front, you can see how Amazon would be interested in creating projects that could use big, splashy theatrical releases to help promote its smaller screen TV shows.
Whilst we wouldn’t mind seeing what some talented creators could do with these properties, we do hope that the studio continues to support other projects like Air as well as part of its ongoing push into theatrical distribution. The film has struggled somewhat at the box office, but hopefully will gain strong enough streaming numbers to convince Amazon not to pour all of its cash into mining the MGM back catalogue for old intellectual property. We’ll bring you more on these projects as we hear it.
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