When “Sputnik” was released last summer, the film earned solid reviews but many wrote it off as just “‘Alien’ in Russia.” Sure, the Russian sci-fi film about an alien that may or may not have taken over the body of a cosmonaut that has returned to Earth after a mission has some “Alien”-esque ideas, but dismissing it as a sort of Ridley Scott rip off is reductive and wrong. As seen in our review from last year, the film has a lot more on its mind. And apparently, Village Roadshow and Matt Reeves agree.
According to Deadline, Village Roadshow is teaming up with Matt Reeves’ 6th & Idaho production company and XYZ Films (“Mandy”) for an English-language remake of “Sputnik.” The original film from last year is set during the Cold War in the ‘80s and tells the story of a cosmonaut that returns to Earth and is the subject of intense interviews by scientists trying to determine if he did in fact bring back an alien organism from space. The original “Sputnik” is directed by Egor Abramenko.
READ MORE: ‘Sputnik’: A Scary Sci-Fi Thriller That Is More Than Just ‘Alien In Russia’ [Review]
“We believe ‘Sputnik’ will translate well to English-speaking audiences and continue to captivate moviegoers worldwide with its thrilling story,” said Jillian Apfelbaum, Village Roadshow Pictures’ Executive Vice President, Feature Film. “We are eager to begin production and believe we have some of the best partners in the industry to reimagine Egor’s original vision while staying true to the film’s journey.”
Russian producer Fedor Bondarchuk, who also stars in the original film, added, “‘Sputnik’ was the first big Russian release to go straight to digital platforms during the lockdown, everyone was staying at home and an unprecedented amount of people watched it, the release created a lot of buzz both in Russia and globally. I’m very proud that ‘Sputnik’ now is a rare Russian film to get an English language remake.”
As mentioned above, we gave the film a positive review, and in our review, we said “‘Sputnik’ is one of those movies that lodges in you like a parasite. It starts out small, insignificant. Then it grows on you. It grows in you. By the end, it completely takes over.”
Obviously, it’s far too early to know when we might see the English-language remake of “Sputnik” arrive in theaters.
You can see the trailer for the Russian film below: