A Star Is Born on TF1: Did you know it’s a remake of a remake?

Tonight TF1 airs the musical drama A Star Is Born, by and with Bradley Cooper, and Lady Gaga in her first starring role! A huge box-office success and eight Oscar-nominated films, it’s nonetheless a remake of several feature films that came before it… because yes, three A Star Is Born films were released before this 2018 version!

a remake

But the theme of “A Star Is Born” is not new, as Barbra Streisand and Kris Kristofferson answered it in the 1976 film “A Star Is Born”. The film is again in the realm of music and depicts a journey of self-destruction. Rock singer John Norman Howard meets Esther, an aspiring singer who soon eclipses him.

Their tumultuous personal and professional relationship is at the heart of the film and largely echoes Bradley Cooper’s version. And it was the first version to move the original subject to music. Because before A Star Is Born was about… cinema!

A remake of a remake

A Star Is Born (1954) follows a fading movie star (James Mason) who meets a young singer (Judy Garland) and introduces her to a studio executive. A young actress rises through the ranks at lightning speed and marries her mentor. Their relationship continues to suffer many setbacks, one of which repeats itself almost exactly as in Bradley Cooper’s version: when a drunken husband ruins a ceremony dedicated to his wife.

A remake of a remake

But before A Star Is Born, there was another Star Is Born, yes! The previous film, also titled in French A Star is Born, was released in 1937! Dressed by Janet Gaynor and Fredric March and directed by William A. Wellman, this version is believed to have been inspired by actress Barbara Stanwyck’s first husband, Frank Fey.

After its success, a sequel to A Star Is Born was announced. Titled Heartbreak Town, it focused on a child star’s journey through the world of cinema. Ultimately, it will never see the light of day.