First Published via HUB Magazine when I was Culture Editor.

Date Published: 25th November 2022.

The latest possibility of remakes has been indulged by Doctor Strange: Multiverse of Madness where we are introduced to the similar face of Professor X (Patrick Stewart) and a different Reed Richards (John Krasinski) originally played by Ioan Gruffudd in the 2005’s Fantastic Four. The newest instalment of Fantastic Four will kick off Phase 6 in 2025, however, not starring John Krasinski. It really begs the question: do we really need more remakes? 

The perfect examples of why remakes and sequels do not always hit the mark are the Star Wars Sequels. I personally love the prequels more than the originals and I would classify Rogue One as a good example of recreating and continuing films for a new generation. The official sequels, however, seem to fall hard. How I see the Star Wars sequels is how I see the third Tobey Mcguire Spider-Man film. The third Spider-Man film is not THAT bad. However, if you watch the Spider-Man films in order, it looks terrible in comparison. The other Spider-Man films excel in acting, writing and fully developed characters. I believe this is the same for the sequels of Star Wars. I think the sequels by themselves are categorically good films. However, when you watch them as part of the entire franchise? It is bad. Personally, I will always say Revenge of the Sith is the best Star Wars film, however, Empire Strikes Back is one of the best films of all time. 

The Amazing Spider-Man is my all-time favourite Spider-Man film. I really think Andrew Garfield should be given another chance (and no that’s not just because he’s hot). I understand that the beginning story of Spider-Man is so well known that they did not bother with Tom Holland’s Spider-Man, but I love the origin story. Tom Holland brings a childhood innocence to the role that Tobey and Andrew lacked. Though Andrew Garfield is objectively the best actor of the three, I absolutely love his cocky, intelligent Spider-Man. The Amazing Spider-Man also presents my favourite love interest, Gwen Stacey played by Emma Stone. As a child I wanted to be Gwen so badly; she was smart, decisive and magnificent. The difference between Tobey/ Andrew’s Spider-Man and Tom’s is simple, theirs feels like a Spider-Man film while Tom’s feels like a Marvel film. I think Tom Holland is a good actor, who has plenty of room for growth. The third film clearly shows his increasing skill. However, Marvel seems to present Spider-Man as a side film for mainstream Marvel Characters and A-List actors whether that is Robert Downey Jr, Jake Gyllenhaal or Benedict Cumberbatch.  

I think X-Men present the perfect example of knowing when to stop. Unfortunately, each film gets worse and worse. Nonetheless, I go see it in the cinema each time. I am excited to see X-Men in the MCU, however, some actors are not replaceable. James McAvoy is one of my favourite actors to watch and it would be a waste of talent to not recast him for the MCU.   

On the one hand, Jurassic World are decent sequels. On the other hand, once you have watched the latest instalment where they mix the originals with the remakes it all makes sense of what was missing. I am not a big fan of Chris Pratt’s work; at his core, I truly believe he is a personality actor and not a character actor. By that, I mean he is cast to play himself and not cast based on his acting abilities to play a variety of characters. Jurassic World is a reminder that nothing can beat the Original. I would label Jurassic Park as my fifth favourite film ever. I do not think it is possible to recreate the wonder and magic of watching Jurassic Park for the first time.  

The question remains: should the film industry continue with remakes and sequels? The answer is simple. If you are trying to recreate the original like Jurassic World and Star Wars: The Force Awakens, then it will most likely fail. You need to add something to grip people into the film. They have already seen the original. If I wanted to watch a good film, I’d watch the original, not the bad remake. A different approach is a multiverse approach in Spider-Man: No Way Home and Jurassic World Dominion. It allows for all generations to watch a film and it creates a different plot line than the originals and you can build/develop characters.  

References-  

Abrams, J.J. Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Lucasfilm, 2015.  

Edwards, Gareth. Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. Lucasfilm, 2016.  

Kershner, Irvin. The Empire Strikes Back. Lucasfilm, 1980.  

Lucas, George. Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith. Lucasfilm, 2005.  

Raimi, Sam. Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. Marvel Studios, 2022.  

Raimi, Sam. Spider-Man. Sony Pictures, 2002.  

Raimi, Sam. Spider-Man 2. Sony Pictures, 2004.  

Raimi, Sam. Spider-Man 3. Sony Pictures, 2007.  

Shakman, Matt. Fantastic Four. Marvel Studios, 2025.  

Spielberg, Steven. Jurassic Park. Universal Pictures, 1993.  

Story, Tim. Fantastic Four. Fox, 2005.  

Trevorrow, Colin. Jurassic World. Universal Pictures, 2015.  

Trevorrow, Colin. Jurassic World Dominion. Universal Pictures, 2022.  

Watts, Jon. Spider-Man: Homecoming. Columbia Pictures and Marvel Studios, 2017.  

Watts, Jon. Spider-Man: Far From Home. Columbia Pictures and Marvel Studios, 2019.  

Watts, Jon. Spider-Man: No Way Home. Columbia Pictures and Marvel Studios, 2021.  

Webb, Marc. The Amazing Spider-Man. Sony Pictures, 2012.  

Webb, Marc. The Amazing Spider-Man 2. Sony Pictures, 2014.  

Vaughn, Matthew. X-Men: First Class. 20^th Century Studios, 2011.