There is a common idea floating around, specifically with cynically-minded fans, that Hollywood has run out of original ideas and everything has to be a sequel, reboot, remake, or a combination of all three. Well, those folks aren’t going to be excited to know that a TV series adaptation of “The Magnificent Seven” is coming, and the origins of the new series seem to lend credence to the idea that modern studios are really only interested in farming IPs.
According to Deadline, “True Detective” creator Nic Pizzolatto has signed on to write and produce a new series adaptation of “The Magnificent Seven” for Amazon Studios. This news comes after it was reported recently that Amazon was looking to cultivate new takes on popular MGM IP after that studio was acquired by the tech giant.
The most interesting aspect of the new report is just how this project came together. Apparently, Pizzolatto had signed a deal with Amazon to work on an original Western series about a former outlaw who enlists the help of some new cohorts as he faces a threat from his past. The studio saw this and decided to get Pizzolatto to take his original idea and turn it into a TV remake of “The Magnificent Seven.”
Here’s the synopsis for the new series:
In the tradition of the great epics from the golden age of westerns, an outlaw and his cohorts must unite a disparate band of indelible fighters to defend a settlement of immigrant homesteaders in an open range war against cattle barons in central Texas, telling an expansive saga of adventure, action and romance.
Interestingly, Pizzolatto has previously worked on the feature-film remake of “The Magnificent Seven,” which was directed by Antoine Fuqua and was released in 2016. That film failed to kickstart a new franchise, even though it had an all-star cast that includes Denzel Washington, Chris Pratt, and Ethan Hawke. Now, it looks like Pizzolatto is ready to try his hand at a remake, yet again.
Fans of “The Magnificent Seven” already know that the original 1960 film is an English-language adaptation of the legendary 1954 Japanese film, “Seven Samurai,” by filmmaker Akira Kurosawa. So, if you’re keeping track at home, the new series is a TV remake of a film that itself was a remake of another film, written by the same guy who already tried to remake the original remake. Got it? Good.
No release date has been set for the new series.