Hollywood sequels, remakes, and reboots have become so commonplace these days that it should no longer register any surprise when you hear news that a studio is developing yet another one. Still, there are those cases where Hollywood announces a remake and it’s a little perplexing. Was anyone really asking for a “Total Recall” remake, for example? The answer, as it turned out last year, was no. That doesn’t faze the studio heads, especially not Universal who are planning on doing a reboot of their own.
The project is “Timecop,” a remake of the 1994 Jean-Claude Van Damme sci-fi action film which was simultaneously released as a comic that same year. The film wound up becoming a box office success and helped to launch a sequel (direct-to-video) and a spin-off TV series (cancelled after nine episodes). In the film — set in the far future of 2004 — Van Damme plays Max Walker, who works for the Time Enforcement Commission, a government police force that’s been created to ensure that the newly perfected time travel technology isn’t abused. Walker soon crosses paths with a corrupt politician (played by the late Ron Silver) who has been using time travel to advance his political career.
Universal is planning on doing a complete re-imagining of the concept, so we’ll have to wait and see what kind of spin they will put on the story. The studio is undoubtedly hoping to turn the film into a franchise. Currently, their only active live-action franchises are “Fast and Furious”, the “Bourne” series, and “Jurassic Park.” But ‘Bourne 5’ and “Jurassic Park IV” are a long way from getting off the ground (production on the latter was recently halted). So, you can imagine Universal is getting pretty desperate at this point, but is a “Timecop” reboot really the answer? You tell us. [THR]
