Look who’s talking about another ’80s remake!
"Green Hornet" producer Neil Moritz is producing a remake of Amy Heckerling’s classic (in my book at least) 1989 comedy "Look Who’s Talking," reports Pajiba. I know it’s April Fool’s Day but I’m inclined to believe this one is no joke.
Pajiba seems to have no nostalgia for the trilogy, including the original, which is, frankly, blasphemy. You see, I’m an unabashed "Look Who’s Talking" fan. Part of this has to do with my teenage crush on Kirstie Alley that stemmed from repeat viewing of "Runaway," "Summer School" and "Madhouse." The other part has to do with my affection for talking babies who sound like Bruce Willis and say the darndest things. And the last part has to do with my undying love for "Godfather" star Abe Vigoda, who played the senile Grandpa in the original, which grossed nearly $300 million worldwide, including $140 million domestically.
The sequel, "Look Who’s Talking Too," surprisingly earned only $47 million stateside despite featuring a new toddler voiced by sitcom queen Roseanne Barr, while the lamentable third film, "Look Who’s Talking Now," could only muster up $10 million at the U.S. box office. I’m a sucker for babies’ inner monologues but even I recognized that by that point, the series had run out of fresh ideas.
"Look Who’s Talking" must have been an influential movie though, since Quentin Tarantino obviously saw it and cast Willis and John Travolta in "Pulp Fiction." The rest is movie history, which sadly also includes "Baby Geniuses," the 1999 movie that gave the articulate baby genre a bad name.
The "Look Who’s Talking" remake is currently out to writers (I’ll do it if no one else will) and there is no director yet. Don’t hold your breath for the return of Travolta or Willis, although anything is possible after the 1-2 punch of "Old Dogs" and "Cop Out."
Pajiba’s report follows another exclusive that has "Parks and Recreation" writer Katie Dippold penning a movie for Fox based on the E*Trade talking baby ads. Apparently, the film is a "mission movie" about a group of talking babies trying to make their way across the playground. It sounds like a mission worthy of "The Expendables," so I hope the diaper-clad heroes ate their Gerber’s for breakfast.
For the record, when I first heard about the E*Trade movie, I literally said out loud, "Why don’t they just remake ‘Look Who’s Talking?’"
And sure enough, here we are. You’ve gotta love Hollywood, folks.
