These days, it feels like the saying "What's old is new again," could not be more true when in regard to today's film and television projects. As a matter of fact, I can't recall even a single day on this job where I (or a co-worker of mine) didn't have to write about an existing property being rebooted or re-imagined. Sometimes, the constant flow of announcements pertaining to remakes feels as habitual as drawing breath. However, that's not always the case, necessarily.
Take David Cronenberg's SCANNERS for example. Recently, Michael Ellenberg’s Media Res and Bron Studios acquired the rights to Cronenberg’s classic 1981 sci-fi thriller, after securing them by way of bidding war against multiple studios. With the proper paperwork in-hand, Ellenberg and Bron plan to adapt the feature into a television series. Of course, with that aspiration, the pair aim to attach a high-profile director and showrunner to SCANNERS before shopping it out to premium services.
The original SCANNERS, both written and directed by David Cronenberg, tells the story of an underground network of individuals born with telekinetic abilities who live on the fringes of a society who hates and fears them. Regardless of their power, the ostracized populace find themselves being hunted by the very people who helped make them what they are.
Ellenberg will executive produce in addition to Bron’s Aaron L. Gilbert and Danielle Reardon, as well as Clark Peterson and Pierre David, who happened to be an executive producer on the original movie. Rene Malo and Fanny-Laure Malo, who represent the rights holder Canada’s Laurem Productions on the property, will serve as the projects executive producers.
Of course, this isn't the first time that someone has made an effort to create an updated version of SCANNERS. For quite a number of years, The Weinstein Co.’s Dimension Films made an attempt at developing the title as a movie and then a TV series, with Rene Malo, Peterson and David attached as producers to both incarnations, though nothing came from their combined intentions.
What do you think of the idea of there (finally) being a SCANNERS television show? Which network would you like to see host the program? Do you have any ideas for a solid showrunner or director choice? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below!
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