A new golden age is dawning for OG movie stars –

ONE A new norm has entered Hollywood as studios continue to mine their intellectual property archives: a hint of a huge gold mine that nostalgia can bring back to the box office. And casting of original franchise actors in secondary extensions or reruns. Look no further than the success of Sony and Marvel Spider-Man: No Way Home – with former Spider-Man stars Toby Maguire and Andrew Garfield with current Spider-Man Tom Holland – or Paramount’s Tom Cruise sequel Top Gun: Maverick.

“Playing legacy characters can be a fantastic weapon and is a transcript for the viewer. It evokes the love of the original and the kind of promise that is in this version,” said Michael Ireland, who is co-chair of the Paramount Motion Picture Group with Daria Cherchek.

“Authenticity is a true McCoy. The choice is now so good from a content perspective,” added Sanford Panich, president of Sony Motion Picture Group. “Why do you want to see a reduction when you see the real thing?”

Observes a rival executive, “Spider-Man: No Way Home Tested the power and scale of it.” (And no, this rival exec is not from Warner Bros., he now trains DC aelvevaAnother multiplayer superhero image returning to Michael Keaton and Ben Affleck as Batman).

Next up, though, are Universal and Amblin. Jurassic World: Dominion. Opening in the US on June 10, the latest installment in the franchise brings together Laura Dern, Jeff Goldblum, Sam Neil and BD Wong for the first time since appearing in a Steven Spielberg film. Jurassic Park (1993). They will be joined by Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard, who are directing Colin Trevor’s new film. jurassic world Trilogy. Trevor, working closely with Spielberg, achieved a fusion of the old and the new. “Obviously, if you can combine nostalgia and novelty, you have an opportunity to grow your audience,” said Michael Moses, Universal’s director of marketing.

It could be argued that the wagon needed to ensure that the sound was amplified. jurassic world It was a mega hit, grossing $653 million domestically and $1.67 billion worldwide. before 2018 Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom Upon joining the Billion Dollar Club, it lagged significantly behind the 2015 film, especially in the US ($417.7 million versus $653.4 million).

Disney 2015 reboot war of the galaxies Franchise, ᲫAla wakes up, who brought back Carrie Fisher, Mark Hamill and Harrison Ford, helped shape the list. But it was a car and a vase All Saints Eve (2018), which returned Jamie Lee Curtis to the role of Lori Stroud, brutally accelerating the trend: the horror film generated $255.6 million against a budget of less than $15 million worldwide.

And more, halloween killsWhich came out in October 2021, in the context of COVID, did pretty well considering it was a day and date release, earning $92.1 million domestically, nearly double that. wonder woman 1984Total – and $131.6 million globally. The latest title, Halloween Ends, debuts in October. “Playing Lori Stroed has been my way of life since 1978,” Curtis recently told the owners of the CinemaCon Theater.

But convincing Curtis to return to the franchise he was disappointed in wasn’t easy. “When I first called James’ agent, they said, ‘Don’t even bother. He’ll never do that again,” recalls Blumhouse founder and co-producer Jason Bloom, who teamed up with Halloween rights holder Miramax to create a new trilogy. Bloom got a 15-minute meeting with the original filmmaker of Halloween, John Carpenter “He’s known for being very rude and he’s no exception to me,” said Bloom, who was onstage and told Carpenter the movies were going to be made anyway, it’s Hollywood after all, so why not • Carpenter, who initially said “no”, changed his mind the next day and said “yes”.

Bloom knew that Carpenter would attract other great talent. David Gordon Green went on to direct and write the screenplay with Danny McBride. “I don’t think David wanted to reinvent a movie that already existed when he was the original creator of this movie, and for some reason he’s not against it,” Bloom said. When Curtis found out about Greene and Carpenter’s involvement, his resistance disappeared. But he made it clear that the end of Halloween is indeed the end.

“It’s a good thing that the tide has turned towards respect for the people who were originally responsible for these amazing films,” Bloom said. “Is it true? I think it’s silly to ignore them.”

Მ similar All Saints EveWes Craven had several titles crying slasher franchise. Deliveries started at the box office, but this year, Spyglass and Paramount’s crying – A sequel to the first films – Fans were thrilled with the legacy of the cast, including Nevi Campbell, Courtney Cox and David Arquette. “I think it speaks to the exponential expansion of stories told, whether on television or in the movies,” says Servek. The film did a great business, grossing $140 million worldwide. (When the news broke in the press, Campbell announced on June 6 that she would not be returning later. crying Fee for payment issues.)

The OG era is the part of the Rekel era where studios go back to the source, redo, invert or rotate. Take it Ghostbusters: Beyond (2021). Following Paul Feig’s 2016 revival, the late Ivan Reitman offered a sequel to the first two films, both directed by and starring Bill Murray, Dan Eckroyd, and Sigourney Weaver to reprise their roles (they made different appearances in the film Faeg, but) . ). The new film, directed by his son Jason Reitman, has grossed nearly $200 million, a gross amount considering the COVID-19 crisis.

On the opposite spectrum are Tales of Caution: The Lucasfilm spinoff. Solo: The Star Wars Story (2018), in which Alden Ehrenreich plays young Hans Solo, has fallen. (The original Han Solo, Harrison Ford, was announced as the Conquering Hero on May 26 at the Star Wars celebration, when he appeared to popularize Lucasfilm. Indiana Jones 5. He will be on the cusp of 81 when it releases in June 2023.) and sources say 20th Century Fox Independence Day: Renaissance (2016), a sequel to the 1996 blockbuster, should have been canceled after Will Smith revealed he didn’t want another role, even with the return of other legacy characters.

Sometimes, even having hereditary characters doesn’t mean the movie will work. Matrix: Easter, the title of Keanu Reeves and other original stars, was soon forgotten when it debuted late last year. He warns Ireland: “You still have a great story to tell. I still have to give [audiences] Something new and different. You have to build something.”

A version of this story first appeared in the June 1 issue of The Gossipify. Click here to subscribe.