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Sony Announce Labyrinth Reboot Plans

Remakes, reboots, re-imaginings, re-quels: whatever we call them, they seem to be ten a penny these days, with new takes on old favourites being announced on a near-constant basis.

However, we can’t be the only ones questioning the taste and timing of this particular announcement.

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The Hollywood Reporter just broke the news that Sony’s Tri-Star Pictures are getting to work on a new version of musical fantasy classic ‘Labyrinth’ - barely a week after the death of the film’s leading man, David Bowie.

The 1986 film - the last to be directed by Muppets creator Jim Henson (who died four years later in 1990) - saw Bowie don a notoriously pointy wig and even more notoriously tight trousers to portray Jareth, the sinister Goblin King.

When capricious teenager Sarah (Jennifer Connelly) unthinkingly wishes her baby brother Toby away, Jareth abducts the child. Sarah’s only chance to save Toby is to find her way through the mysterious, hazardous labyrinth.

George Lucas produced the film, and the script was from Terry Jones of Monty Python.

Though a box office flop on release, the years since have seen ‘Labyrinth’ grow into a perrenial family favourite, beloved for its remarkable puppet creations, witty dialogue, Connelly’s touching performance, and Bowie’s toe-tapping soundtrack.

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When The Jim Henson Company sold The Muppets (plus ‘Bear in the Big Blue House’) to Disney in 2004, the company notably did not relinquish the rights to ‘Labyrinth’ or Henson’s earlier film ‘The Dark Crystal,’ so it has long been speculated that they had future plans for the properties; indeed, ‘The Dark Crystal’ did have a sequel in development at one point.

Little is currently known about this new take on ‘Labyrinth,’ aside from its screenwriter Nicole Perlman, and its producer Lisa Henson, daughter of the legendary filmmaker and puppeteer.

Perlman penned the first draft of Marvel’s ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’ and is currently co-writing ‘Captain Marvel’ with Meg LeFauve (’Inside Out’).

It remains to be seen whether the new film will simply retrace the steps of the original, or be a new story set within the same universe.

Picture Credit: Sony

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