• TGN's Newsletter
  • Posts
  • “It’s a really disturbing movie”: Haunted Mansion director wants to remake cult classic Wizard of Oz Twist -TGN

“It’s a really disturbing movie”: Haunted Mansion director wants to remake cult classic Wizard of Oz Twist -TGN

Resume

  • Director Justin Simien expresses a strong desire to remake the cult classic The Wiz, envisioning a black-focused universe with music by Quincy Jones.

  • Despite its initial reception, The Wiz has maintained a loyal fanbase and saw success with the television production The Wiz Live! from 2015, indicating that there is still interest in the story.

  • Simien’s possible involvement in a reboot is exciting as audiences are looking for more diversity in film and his fresh take on the beloved story could bring a new take on the iconic Emerald City sequence.

Haunted house director Justin Simien wants to remake The Wiza cult classic The Wizard of Oz. The musical, based on the Broadway production of the same name, premiered in 1978. It follows Diana Ross as Dorothy, a schoolteacher from Harlem who is swept away to Oz, though the film depicts the fantasyland as an alternate version of New York City. In addition to Ross, The Wiz stars Michael Jackson, Nipsey Russell, Mabel King and Richard Pryor as the titular character.

At the 2023 San Diego Comic-Con, Simien spoke up Collider‘s Directors on Control Panel, where Screen Rant was present. Discuss The Wizhe explained, “It’s a really disturbing moviebut said he would be interested in making it again. Read Simien’s comments about a possible reboot of The Wiz below:

“I want to make The Wiz so bad. Oh my god I want to make it so bad. The Wiz was the first movie I ever saw, so by the time I saw The Wizard of Oz, I couldn’t understand why they made a white version of The Wiz. So my vision for the movie was a black-focused universe with music by Quincy Jones. It’s a really disturbing movie to watch as an adult, but I’d love to. That series from Emerald City? You are not yet ready for what I have prepared.“

Could a remake of The Wiz work?

Despite poor critical reception and disappointing box office performance, The Wiz has maintained a loyal fan base years after its original release. A Broadway revival is reportedly in the works, and if the musical reaches more audiences, it seems possible that another film adaptation could be made. Simien, who directed Dear white people And Bad hair prior to his involvement in the Haunted house movie, seems to already have ideas in mind.

The Wizz Live!, which aired on NBC in 2015, proved successful for the network, earning high ratings and several Primetime Emmy Award nominations. Featuring recognizable talent including Common, Uzo Aduba, Mary J. Blige and Queen Latifah, the televised event indicated that viewers were still eager to see the story play out on screen. As audiences look for more diversity in film, and with the number of remakes produced by Hollywood, a reboot of The Wiz could do well in theaters.

It’s exciting to hear that Simien, a talented up-and-coming filmmaker, is looking to reboot. While The Wiz contains some differences with The Wizard of Oz, the story is much the same, and if Simien were to direct a remake, it’s worth wondering how that project would compare. The scene he was referring to, in Emerald City, is one of them The Wiz‘s more memorable moments, so it’s interesting to think about how he might update that as well.