While The Film Stage reserves a profound respect for scribe Alex Garland (Sunshine will be a revered masterpiece in 15 years), this bit of news should make you utter W.T.F. in unison with us. Deadline has nabbed the scoop that a forthcoming reboot/re-imagining (will it ever end?) of Judge Dredd,being penned by the writer, was bought in pre-sale at the Cannes Film Festival by Reliance Big Entertainment with Pete Travis (Vantage Point) set to direct.
The film is being backed by producer Andrew MacDonald‘s DNA Films in conjunction with Reliance, and is reportedly getting 3-D treatment with a proposed budget of a relatively low $50 million.
If you’re not familiar with the horrendous 1995 Judge Dredd (and there’s no reason you should be), then worry not. As often happens with these reboots, Garland’s script purportedly revisits the original comic book source material, detailing itself around a future law enforcement system that employs its officers to carry out execute the law in full (pun intended).
The main question surrounding this seems to be, simply put: Why? Is there that much of a demand for the Dredd franchise? While it does seem like a nice, large concept on a low budget for a small company, does it really matter? Other than Garland’s credentials, the original film and Travis’ Vantage Point don’t inspire any bankable confidence.
Are you looking forward to a small studio Dredd reboot – or any reboot at all for that matter? Will Garland add any merit to the project?