Though Netflix and an increased cable presence have allowed for British comedies to cross the Atlantic, find new audiences, and vice-versa, that exchange still hasn’t stopped the practice of ungodly U.S. remakes from happening. “Coupling” turned into a ghastly form in 2003, while the McG-produced remake of “Spaced” never even made it past an embarrassingly botched pilot. The latest case sits with “The Inbetweeners,” an E4 comedy that gained a massive U.K. following and a successful film adaptation. And while a 2012 MTV remake only ran stateside for one season, but that hasn’t stopped the forces that be from attempting another version.
Deadline reports director Jim Field Smith has been tapped by Paramount to front the remake, promisingly titled “Virgins America,” after directing mid-level comedies such as 2011’s “Butter” and “She’s Out of My League.” A cast is yet to be attached, but—so as not to draw associations to the failed MTV version—look for an entire rehaul with the same concept in place: four awkward teenage friends chase girls and alcohol with little success at either.
Meanwhile, the original U.K. version starring Simon Bird, James Buckley, Blake Harrison, and Joe Thomas shows no sign of slowing down in feature-length form: “The Inbetweeners Movie” took in a massive $90 million haul when it was released in 2012, and naturally a sequel is in the works, according to its creators’ Iain Morris and Damon Beesley. “As promised, you are now the first to know ‘officially’ that there’s a new ‘Inbetweeners’ movie coming your way next summer,” they wrote on Facebook (via The Independent), but besides a release date (August 14th) and potential Australian setting, not much else about the film is known.
One actor from the series is branching out in the interim though: Henri Lloyd Hughes, who portrayed the school bully Mark Donovan, will next star opposite Mia Wasikowska in a new cinematic take on “Madame Bovary.” He will play Charles Bovary, the provincial doctor of Wasikowska’s character, alongside the acting talents of Paul Giamatti, Rhys Ifans and Ezra Miller. Sophie Bartes (“Cold Souls”) will direct the Flaubert adaptation, but as Hughes likely realized, that cast is the major draw overall. [Deadline]