Could Woke Backlash Crush ‘Wizard of Oz’ Remake?
Does Kenya Barris' re-imagining fit into a President Trump 2.0 culture?
Some movies should be left alone.
“Casablanca.” “Citizen Kane.” Even “Back to the Future.” Hollywood studios may have remake mania – There’s a new “Basic Instinct” on the way, as well as a race-swapped “Death of a Salesman.”
Even film executives know there are some titles that shouldn’t be touched.
For many movie fans, “The Wizard of Oz” falls into that category. Yes, we’ve had a musical spin on the tale (1978’s “The Wiz”) and various prequels and spinoffs (1985’s “Return to Oz,” 2013’s “Oz the Great and Powerful”).
The original remains so magical, so remarkable, that a remake seems a fool’s errand. The film classic just debuted at The Sphere in Las Vegas, confirming its cultural cache in the 21st century.
Tell that to Kenya Barris. The “Black-ish” creator announced in 2022 that he was reimagining the 1939 film classic for a new audience.
The completed screenplay, according to a January 2024 Variety article, finds Dorothy living in an apartment complex in Inglewood, Calif. and features a protagonist of color.
So, where are the updates on the project?
Barris’ IMDB page has no listing for a “Wizard of Oz” film. We haven’t heard any official news about the project in over a year.
No casting announcements. No possible release dates.
Barris initially promised plenty of Identity Politics in the new version. The story will be set in a black neighborhood, and he told the press the film would feature LGBTQ+ representation.
“Now we’re going to turn a mirror on where we’re at right now and take disparate characters from the LGBTQ community, from different cultural communities and socioeconomic communities, and tell a story that reflects the world. I think this is the best time to do that.”
He made those comments in 2022.
Today, Hollywood is backpedaling furiously on all things woke. Disney just ditched a Colin Kaepernick docuseries by Oscar-winner Spike Lee. The Mouse House famously scuttled a trans storyline in its “Win or Lose” Pixar series.
Woke late-night host Stephen Colbert got a pink slip from his CBS bosses earlier this year. The newly woke Howard Stern may part ways with SiriusXM after more than a decade of gargantuan radio contracts.
A saucy jeans ad by “It” actress Sydney Sweeney proved a smash for American Eagle, and the starlet felt no need to apologize for the ad or her “good genes.” Had she shot the commercial five years ago, she’d be scrambling to revive her career, not merely cashing big checks.
And, of course, the most politically incorrect politician of our age is back in the White House. And the walls are definitely not closing in around him.
It’s a very different cultural moment, and a “Wizard of Oz” reimagining suddenly feels so very 2022. Does that explain the lack of updates?
UPDATE: Another sign of the project’s wobbly status? Amazon just announced its own “Wizard of Oz” series, reimagined for YA viewers.
Why can’t people just leave the Wizard of Oz (the original) alone? All generations love it and to constantly try and make remakes I honestly believe will completely fail. Money lost. Worse yet you are robbing this generation and future generations of the great gift of watching the real one, the first one and really enjoy it. All of the new Wizard movies in my opinion mean nothing compared to the original. Just like other movies they have tried to remake, they are failures and do not make near the money of the originals. Just move on and let all generations enjoy the original. No need to reply with nasty remarks.
Black fatigue is real, ESPECIALLY when it’s coming after classic remakes.
All of the remakes are hideous. It only illustrates how incredibly unimaginative the industry is now. Instead of ruining something beloved and that works, why not start something from scratch? Don’t bother with identity THIS or identity THAT. Stop forcing inclusivity on us just to virtue signal. Just make a film and if it works with all white people, go for it! If it works with all black people, go for it! If it works with the story to have a mix of all colors, GO FOR IT!
Just stop all the remakes! All the reboots!
Rediscover IMAGINATION!
Part of me almost hopes they do make this woke piece of garbage and it flops in Marvels or Snow White fashion, losing hundreds of millions in the process.
Last note! He also did crap remakes of “Cheaper by the Dozen” and “White Men Can’t Jump.’ He seriously must be stopped.
He also RUINED “Coming to America” with its sickeningly awful sequel. He’s the worst.
Kenya Barris showed how evil woke can be with his huge megaturd “Black AF” that bombed on Netflix, thank God. Non stop PC combined with a vastly overdone amount of F bombs. “Black ish” was an entertianing show but other than that, he’s made trash with that and “Girls Trip>” And he foisted the youngest girl on “Blackish”s pointless and completely unentertaining ripoff of “Big” called “Little” upon the world. That’s one of the worst abuses of a classic movie ever. So glad this is shut down. He should be ashamed.
This is what is killing Hollywood.
AI will give us better movies and the ability to have you choose white people in the movie.
I never cared for the WOO! There was something about those “Flying Monkees” that freaked me out so I’ve never seen the entire movie! And speaking of “Flying Monkees”, just how will they manage to cast those and not “offend” the “offended”?? Go ahead, spend BILLION$ and make it an awesome movie for the leftist nitwits – for sure the Wicked WIZARD (no witch this time) will have an uncanny resemblance to PRESIDENT TRUMP! Is Lizzo on call to be the “Good One”??
There isn’t enough bandwidth to have another version of Oz after Wicked. I was surprised by how good Wicked was despite Woke casting, but they managed to craft a good story. I expect the remake to inferior.