The Best Jeff Daniels Movie Is Getting A Remake
Jeff Daniels 90s horror film, Arachnophobia, is being remade by the director of Happy Death Day .
Fans of the Jeff Daniels and John Goodman cult classic Arachnophobia are in luck because it looks like a remake is getting closer and closer to being made. Movieweb reported that in Christopher Landon’s recent interview with DiscussingFilm, he said he expects the Arachnophobia remake to be the next film he works on. While promoting his upcoming film We Have a Ghost, which hits Netflix tomorrow, Landon said, “We’re getting super close,” adding, “The script’s done.”
While Jeff Daniels and Goodman both have plenty of classic films to their names, plenty of people have a soft spot for this particular horror film, so this is good news. Christopher Landon was announced to write and direct the remake a little while ago. He certainly has the horror bonafides, as the director is known for his films like Happy Death Day and Freaky. The remake should be right up his alley.
The Arachnophobia remake is set to be produced by James Wan and Michael Clear, with original Arachnophobia director Frank Marshall executive producing. One thing worth noting is that this new film has always been referred to as a remake, which makes some fans of the original worry that there won’t be any appearances from the original cast. It would be a bit disappointing if we got a new Arachnophobia movie and didn’t see Jeff Daniels, John Goodman, or Harley Jane Kozak come back to battle more spiders.
If you missed the 1990 original film, it was about a deadly invasion of South American spiders in a rural California town, which some local doctors and an exterminator must find a way to stop. Jeff Daniels plays the arachnophobe, Dr. Ross Jennings, while John Goodman plays the exterminator Delbert McClintock. Frank Marshall directed the film with a screenplay by Wesley Strick based on a story by Al Williams and Don Jakoby.
Arachnophobia was one of the quieter hits for the prestigious production company Amblin Entertainment, known for films like Gremlins, Back to the Future, and E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial at the time. The company, founded by Steven Spielberg, Kathleen Kennedy, and Frank Marshall, was just a couple of years away from their biggest hit yet, Jurassic Park, when this film was released. It’s definitely a movie that is sometimes overlooked in their catalog, but it’s still a film worthy of the Amblin name and one of the best films from Jeff Daniels and John Goodman to boot.
While it doesn’t seem like the Arachnophobia film will be a direct sequel, it would be cool if they took Amblin’s Jurassic World franchise cues and brought back the beloved characters from the original. The Jurassic World: Dominion film did fall flat despite bringing back Jeff Goldblum, Sam Neill, and Laura Dern, but the Arachnophobia remake won’t be coming with the baggage of having two films preceding it. It could kick the franchise off right away and bring Jeff Daniels and John Goodman back.
Whether or not Jeff Daniels and John Goodman return to fight more spiders, we’ll be getting the Arachnophobia sequel, hopefully sooner than later. In the meantime, you can catch Christopher Landon’s new film. We Have a Ghost tomorrow. Stay tuned for more news on his Arachnophobia remake.
