‘Splash’ Is Getting Remade

Drew Dietsch
Movies
Movies

It has become widely accepted that every film will one day get thrown into the remake machine. If classics like RoboCop and Psycho are up for grabs, it stands to reason that anything is fair game. To be fair, there have been plenty of great remakes. Of course, there have been many terrible remakes as well. But, most remakes fall somewhere in between. Today’s news is likely going to find its home there.

A remake of the fantasy/comedy film Splash has been announced starring Channing Tatum and Jillian Bell. The original film starred Tom Hanks as a hapless landlubber who falls in love with a mermaid played by Daryl Hannah. Naturally, the roles will be reversed and Tatum will be donning the fish tail this time around. Expect this to fall into the same comedic wheelhouse as the 21 Jump Street films: self-aware and overtly silly.

Splash is a loose enough concept that a lot of wacky turns can be taken with the story. Honestly, the original film has not aged very well. The time for a remake seems right. What really matters is how broad the film is willing to go with its ideas. There’s plenty to mine from the concept of human/merperson romantic relations, but will the remake try to skew towards a wider audience? Will it be more adult-leaning? How naughty will the jokes get?

Splash is no sacred piece of cinema so the filmmakers should go as crazy as they want with the property. There’s not much reason otherwise to do another version of the film. There’s little notability to the brand and it’s doubtful there’s a large contingency of Splash fans. This could be fun if it allows itself to be as ridiculous as its premise.

Expect to hear about the Tom Hanks and Daryl Hannah cameos sooner rather than later.

Drew Dietsch
Drew Dietsch has been professionally writing about entertainment for over a decade. His bylines include FANDOM - where he was a founding contributor and Entertainment Editor - Bloody Disgusting, SYFY WIRE, and more. He created and hosts GenreVision, a weekly film discussion show at genrevision.com.