‘Goonies 2′ and ‘Gremlins’ Remake Fast-Tracked by Warner Bros.

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It seems to be a rule that just about every successful movie ever made has a remake or sequel in development, even if nothing ever comes of those plans. Talk of planned follow-ups to 1980s classics Gremlins and The Goonies is therefore nothing new, but it seems that the gears might finally be turning on Warner Bros’ planned Gremlins remake and The Goonies 2.

The Goonies director Richard Donner revealed last week that a sequel is currently in the works. Sean Astin said in 2012 that he was “1000 percent certain” that a sequel would happen and that he was willing to bet his children on it, so this news bodes well for both Astin and his children.

Ain’t it Cool News has now reaffirmed that The Goonies 2 is “very real” and claims that Donner, Steven Spielberg and Chris Columbus are co-producing the film and actively looking for writers and directors. This means that Donner and Columbus are not planning to direct or write the sequel themselves, as they did with the original. As far as the plot goes, the producers apparently want to focus on the children of the Goonies and include cameos from the original characters where possible.

The Goonies 2 is reportedly being fast-tracked by Warner Bros, and if AICN is to be believed then it’s not alone. The article concludes with the hint that a Gremlins remake is “moving quickly” at the studio. As with The Goonies 2, this is a project that has been talked about for years and was supposedly just around the corner the last time we reported on it, around this time last year.

At the time, Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter writer Seth Grahame-Smith was attached to produce the remake. Grahame-Smith seems to be firmly entrenched in reviving nostalgic classics right, as he’s also set to produce a remake of It and is writing and producing Beetlejuice 2.

When Columbus was asked about a potential Gremlins remake a few years ago, he said that it was the kind of movie that would be “impossible to recreate in a CGI environment,” since doing so would “lose that sense of anarchy that those gremlins had.” Obviously CGI has come a long way even in that short time, but even so it would be great to see a remake with new and improved puppets. Gizmo in particular wouldn’t be nearly as cuddly if he was computer animated.