Recast a Classic Movie

[David O Burcham]

The movie in question would have the same script and same shot-for-shot direction... only instead of being made decades ago, it is being made for the first time this year. Try not to approach it from a "remake" point of view.

When thinking of a modern actor to fill a role, consider the description of the character and not the actor who was cast in the original.

I'll start with It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World.

Harrison Ford as Captain C.G. Culpepper (Spencer Tracey)

Will Ferrel as unlucky dentist Melville Crump (Sid Ceasar) and Reese Witherspoon as his ditzy wife Monica (Edie Adams)

Ray Romano as nervous edible seaweed company owner J. Russell Finch (Milton Berle), Julia Louis-Dreyfus as his exasperated wife Emeline (Dorothy Provine), and Sally Field as his shrill mother-in-law Mrs. Marcus (Ethel Merman)

Billy Crystal and Robin Williams as Vegas-bound gamblers Dingy Bell (Mickey Rooney) and Benjy Benjamin (Buddy Hackett)

Billy Bob Thornton as gullible truck driver Lenny Pike (Jonathan Winters)

Rowan Atkinson as cacti enthusiast Lt. Col. J. Algernon Hawthorne (Terry-Thomas)

Tim Allen as sneaky slickster Otto Meyer (Phil Silvers)

Ben Stiller as psychotic lifeguard Sylvester Marcus (Dick Shawn), Mrs. Marcus' son and Emeline's brother

Kevin Pollack and David Alan Grier as two nosey cabbies (Peter Falk and Eddie "Rochester" Anderson)

Bill Cosby as dying tuna fish factory robber Smiler Grogan (Jimmy Durante)

[stealthwise]

Face/Off starring Tony Danza and Gilbert Gottfried.

Couldn't be any worse.

[The Foreigner]

The Breakfast Club

A lot of the charm of this movie came from the casting of unknown teenagers-- So imagine these actors de-aged about 10 years and less famous, and maybe you'd get a better picture. Anyhoo; fun topic. Here are my choices:

Claire (Molly Ringwald) - Scarlett Johansson

Bender (Judd Nelson) - Cillian Murphy

Brian (Anthony Michael Hall) - Topher Grace

Allison (Ally Sheedy) - Maggie Gyllenhaal

Andrew (Emilio Estevez) - Joseph Gordon-Levitt

Principal Vernon (Paul Gleason) - Phillip Seymour Hoffman

Carl the Janitor (John Kapelos) - Steve Carell

[HomerJay]

The Breakfast Club

A lot of the charm of this movie came from the casting of unknown teenagers-- So imagine these actors de-aged about 10 years and less famous, and maybe you'd get a better picture. Anyhoo; fun topic. Here are my choices:

Claire (Molly Ringwald) - Scarlett Johansson

Bender (Judd Nelson) - Cillian Murphy

Brian (Anthony Michael Hall) - Topher Grace

Allison (Ally Sheedy) - Maggie Gyllenhaal

Andrew (Emilio Estevez) - Joseph Gordon-Levitt

Principal Vernon (Paul Gleason) - Phillip Seymour Hoffman

Carl the Janitor (John Kapelos) - Steve Carell

That's pretty damn good actually.

A new A-list NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD:
Ben - Don Cheadle
Barbara - Amanda Plummer
Mr. Cooper - Dennis Franz
Mrs. Cooper - Allison Janney
Tom - Nick Stahl

[EZMOHR]

Star Wars:

Luke Skywalker- Emile Hirsch
Princess Leia- Emily Blunt
Han Solo- Josh Holloway
Obi-Wan Kennobi- John Hurt
Grand Moff Tarkin- Derek Jacobi
New Voice of Darth Vader- Come on, James Earl Jones 4-Ever


C-3PO- Bender B. Rodriguez
R2-D2- My I-pod

[The Foreigner]

Star Wars:

Luke Skywalker- Emile Hirsch
Princess Leia- Emily Blunt
Han Solo- Josh Holloway
Obi-Wan Kennobi- John Hurt
Grand Moff Tarkin- Derek Jacobi
New Voice of Darth Vader- Come on, James Earl Jones 4-Ever

Ooh, good ones. In the same vein--

Raiders Of The Lost Ark:

Indiana Jones (Harrison Ford) - Nathan Fillion

Marion (Karen Allen) - Rachel McAdams

Belloq (Paul Freeman) - Jonathan Rhys Meyers

Sallah (John Rhys Davies) - Alfred Molina

Marcus Brody (Denholm Elliot) - Ricky Gervais

Toht (Ronald Lacey) - Brad Dourif

And another untouchable classic:

Casablanca:

Rick Blaine (Humphrey Bogart) - Eric Bana

Illsa Lund (Ingrid Bergman) - Jennifer Connelly

Victor Lazlo (Paul Henreid) - Matthew Goode

Ugarte (Peter Lorre) - Andy Serkis

Renault (Claude Raines) - Gary Oldman

Ferrari (Sydney Greenstreet) - Michael Caine

[the goddamn batman]

Casablanca:

Rick Blaine (Humphrey Bogart) - Eric Bana

Illsa Lund (Ingrid Bergman) - Jennifer Connelly

Awww... no. It didn't work in Hulk, why would it work any better in a classic?

[The Foreigner]

Awww... no. It didn't work in Hulk, why would it work any better in a classic?

Because they're two of the best actors working today?

[the_coldest_sun]

I love this thread.

[david r]

Pulp Fiction:

Travolta's character: Matthew Broderick

Samuel L. Jackson's character: Ludacris

Bruce Willis: Vin Diesel

Uma Thurman: Jennifer Love Hewitt

Ving Rhames: Gilbert Gottfried

Directed by Joel Schumacher

[david r]

Showgirls starring Meryl Streep and Judi Dench

[David O Burcham]

Ugarte (Peter Lorre) - Andy Serkis

Renault (Claude Raines) - Gary Oldman

Ferrari (Sydney Greenstreet) - Michael Caine

That's some nice recasting!

Speaking of Oldman...

Jaws

Denzel Washington as Martin Brody (Roy Scheider), New York cop come island tourist town sheriff and Carla Gugino as his wife Ellen (Lorraine Gary)

Gary Oldman as Quint (Robert Shaw), Navy vet with a personal grudge against all sharks

Sean Astin as Matt Hooper (Richard Dreyfuss), young marine biologist and shark aficionado

Tommy Lee Jones as Mayor Larry Vaughn (Murry Hamilton), misguided local politico who will do anything to ensure his town has an successful tourist season to survive the winter











and Rosie O'Donnell as the shark

[saintsaucey]

Face/Off starring Tony Danza and Gilbert Gottfried.

Couldn't be any worse.

hey, i liked face off

[Buzz Dixon]

I'm going to do a variation: Re-cast a classic movie by going even further back in Hollywood history!

STAR WARS

Luke Skywalker = Dick Powell

Han Solo = Errol Flynn

Princess Leia = Fay Wray

Obi-wan Kenobi = Ronald Coleman

Chewbacca = Lon Chaney Jr.

C3P0 = Ray Bolger

Darth Vader (body) = Glenn Strange

Darth Vader (voice) = Orson Welles

Gran Moff Tarkin = Raymond Massey