It’s impossible to ignore: remakes, reboots, requels, “soft reboots,” reimaginings, and assorted other ways to iterate upon an existing film have become an increasingly large part of the film landscape over the years. They’ve always been there since the literal dawn of cinema (The Great Train Robbery was remade in 1904, barely one year after its original release), but it’s hard to deny that they’ve become much more visible. This hasn’t been a good thing; original IPs don’t get a lot of press, and many of these remakes aren’t especially good. However, in the best-case scenario, a remake can successfully execute a concept its original film wasn’t able to or provide a worthwhile new angle on its premise. Some remakes have even been nominated for Best Picture, proving that a film based on the existing source material isn’t always a red flag. Many modern movies, in fact, would probably benefit from being remade, having good concepts but awkward and poor execution. 10 – ‘Cats’ (2019) In this adaptation of the globally popular musical, cats sing and dance to determine which of them may be blessed with the mercy of death and ascend to “The Heaviside Layer.” The film was heavily panned, quickly becoming known as an iconic so-bad-it’s-good movie. However, as much as this film stinks, it’s not necessarily the source material that made it so. With more thoughtful staging, a better sense of what makes the original musical work, and ideally, with more thoughtful casting, Cats could have been something genuinely special. If any stage musical deserves a second chance at the screen, it’s this one. 9 – ‘Artemis Fowl’ (2020) In this adaptation of the popular young adult book series of the 2000s, a criminal boy genius finds himself thrust into the world of elves, dwarves, and fairies when he kidnaps one of their ranks for ransom. This film was absolutely savaged by both fans of the books and critics, receiving a staggering 8% on Rotten Tomatoes. While this movie may have been absolutely awful on nearly every possible level, the book series it’s adapted from is decidedly not. Eoin Colfer is one of the more underrated and unsung young adult authors out there, and his work is fertile material for adaptations that aren’t awful. It would be wise for Disney to call a mulligan on this one and start over from scratch. 8 – ‘Hardcore Henry’ (2015) In this action film shot entirely from a first-person point of view, Henry awakes in a laboratory without any memories and must use his newfound cybernetic implants to rescue his wife when a telekinetic crime lord kidnaps her. The film landed largely mediocre reception, with an almost evenly-split 51% on Rotten Tomatoes. This is a film where the end result may not have been quite there, but the idea is fundamentally compelling. Ilya Naishuller, the director, has since advanced his craft quite a bit; Nobody, his second feature, was received much better. It would be interesting to see him take another feature-length crack at the first-person perspective style of action this movie showcased. 7 – ‘Ma’ (2019) In this 2019 bone-chiller, Octavia Spencer plays Ma, a middle-aged woman with a dark secret who slowly becomes obsessed with a group of teenagers. While Spencer’s performance was widely praised, the film as a whole was divisive at best, landing mediocre scores across the board. While the film may have landed with a thud, Spencer’s performance is undeniably a powerhouse. It’s easy to see how her performance, which saves this movie, could catapult a better one to greatness. She deserves another chance to grace the world with the character of Ma in a movie more befitting of her talents.

6 – ‘Morbius’ (2022)

In this Spider-Man spinoff, Jared Leto plays Michael Morbius, a scientist turned into a vampire through illegal gene-splicing. The film was absolutely savaged by critics and audiences, becoming the subject of widespread public mockery and memes, with the most charitable opinions seeing it as bland and mediocre. However, despite that fact, the character of Morbius isn’t necessarily without value. It’s worth considering that he existed as a Spider-Man villain well before the film and is a generally well-liked one. If handled correctly in a better, Leto-free film, audiences could be in for an actual “Morbius sweep.” 5 – ‘Guns Akimbo’ (2020) In this film, Daniel Radcliffe has guns bolted to his hands and must fight off an increasingly savage horde of mercenaries gunning for him. Despite this incredible concept, the film landed with a dull thud, scoring a 51% on Rotten Tomatoes and 6.3/10 on IMDB. This is a film where the gimmick is significantly better than the movie it occupies. In theory, taking a well-liked actor or actress, bolting guns to their hands, and throwing a horde of goons at them should be a killer concept. Guns Akimbo didn’t manage it, but that’s only a sign that it needs to be tried again. 4 – ‘Bloodshot’ (2020) In this movie, adapted from the Valiant Comics series, Vin Diesel plays Ray Garrison, a soldier killed in combat and turned into a cybernetic war machine. Despite Diesel’s performance and its action sequences being praised, this film received mostly negative reviews from critics and did poorly with audiences. If any comic book adaptation demands a soft reboot, it’s Bloodshot. The character has a long-running history in comic books, with plenty of interesting material to pull from; it really shouldn’t be difficult to make a good movie with him. There’s no reason even to recast Diesel; he was already one of the bright spots of the original. 3 – ‘The Grudge’ (2020) In this reboot of the 2004 film of the same name, itself a remake of the 2002 Japanese film Ju-On: The Grudge, which was itself a remake of the 2000 Ju-On: The Curse, a police officer investigates several murders connected to the evil spirit Kayako. The film was received poorly, being seen as dull and derivative. While the film was received poorly, its angle towards the Ju-On series and mythology isn’t inherently flawed. If any of the attempts so far at reviving J-horror deserve another shot, it’s this one. Additionally, it would mean audiences get a four-layer-deep remake, which would be a first in cinema history. 2 – ‘Gemini Man’ (2019) In this Ang Lee film, Will Smith fights another, younger Will Smith through the power of cloning and CGI de-aging technology, then teams up with the younger Will Smith to fight their employer. Gemini Man was received coldly by critics, scoring poorly on most metrics. However, its core gimmick is compelling. Just about any actor or actress could be slotted into the idea, and it would be fun to see, regardless of your opinion of the ethics of de-aging technology. The mental image of middle-aged, bearded Keanu Reeves fighting his The Matrix-era self, or current-day Michelle Yeoh throwing down with her early ’90s self, makes it obvious why Gemini Man is fertile ground for a remake. 1 – ‘Ghosted’ (2023) In this Apple TV+ film, Chris Evans plays Cole, a farmer’s market vendor “ghosted” by his hookup, Sadie (Ana de Armas), and investigates further, only to discover that she’s a CIA operative. The film was received negatively by critics, being lambasted as dull, mediocre sludge. However, in spite of this film’s reception, it became one of Apple TV+’s most-watched debuts upon its release. It stands to reason that audiences clearly hunger for Chris Evans and Ana de Armas. It might be smart for Apple to make this film again and reap the benefits a second time. If it somehow worked once, it’ll definitely work again.