8 Stories Filmmakers Keep Returning to, From Gatsby to A Star Is Born

Some stories keep finding their way back to the screen, with a new cast or a different setting each time. There are so many good movies out there, so good that they’re remade once, twice, maybe even three times.
Here are some of those movies that didn’t fade away and Hollywood just couldn’t keep their hands off of remaking them!

Oliver Twist

Charles Dickens’s Oliver Twist has been adapted repeatedly, from early silent films to musicals and television productions. 
It’s been remade several times and the 1948 remake was extremely well-received. The most famous version was from 1968 and based on the smash hit musical Oliver! Other screen versions include the 1922 silent film, the 1933 film, Roman Polanski’s 2005 adaptation and a 2007 television serial. They do not all use the same format or approach.

Brewster’s Millions

Brewster’s Millions began as George Barr McCutcheon’s 1902 novel. Its screen versions stretch from a 1914 silent film to the 1985 Richard Pryor comedy. The premise is simple enough to survive several changes of setting and scale. The original film centers on Montgomery Brewster, a man who has to spend $1 million without getting anything new, to then inherit $7 million. When the 1985 Richard Pryor version came out, Montgomery had to spend $30 million in order to inherit $300 million.

The Great Gatsby

Based on F. Scott Fitzgerald’s iconic novel of the same name, The Great Gatsby has inspired both cinema and television adaptations. 
The 1926 silent film was followed by cinema versions in 1949, 1974 and 2013. The 2013 film stars Leonardo DiCaprio and Carey Mulligan; a 2000 television adaptation belongs in a separate count.

Great Expectations

Based on the Charles Dickens’ novel from 1861, Great Expectations has returned to film and television many times. David Lean’s 1946 adaptation and Alfonso Cuarón’s 1998 version show how differently the same story can be presented. 
The 1934 film (which received less than favorable reviews) starred Phillips Holmes as Pip and Jane Wyatt as Estella. Later versions include Lean’s 1946 film, a 1974 adaptation and the 1998 film, which moves the story to a modern American setting.

Jane Eyre

Charlotte Brontë wrote one of the most renowned pieces of classic literature, Jane Eyre. It’s about a heroine’s journey into adulthood and her growing love for Mr. Rochester, the mysterious master of Thornfield Hall.

The beloved literary story has been adapted for both movies and television. Radio and theatre have also taken it on, so any total depends on which kinds of adaptation you include. The 2011 version starring Mia Wasikowska and Michael Fassbender is a beautiful movie with terrific performances. The costumes and Thornfield setting give the film its period atmosphere, while the relationship between the two leads keeps the story moving.

Frankenstein

After the 1931 release of Frankenstein, there were many more film adaptations of Mary Shelley’s tale. The image of Boris Karloff’s monster has remained a cultural touchstone, even as other filmmakers have tried their own versions.

The story returned in 1957’s The Curse of Frankenstein, the 1973 television film Frankenstein: The True Story, Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein in 1994 and Victor Frankenstein in 2015. These are different interpretations of the material, rather than a single continuous series.

A Star Is Born

The 1937 romantic drama A Star Is Born stars Janet Gaynor as a young aspiring actress with big dreams and Fredric March as an alcoholic movie star looking to relaunch his career. The original film was a huge hit with critics and commercial audiences, winning the Academy Award for Best Original Story. Its story of one career rising as another falls proved durable enough to support several very different stars. 
The 1954 remake with Judy Garland and James Mason gave the impressive actress a Golden Globe Award and helped reinvigorate her career. The 1976 version starring Barbra Streisand and Kris Kristofferson switched things up a bit and became the second highest grossing film that year. Then came Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga in 2018. The names and music changed again, while the painful imbalance between the two careers remained at the heart of the story.

Seven Samurai

Regarded as one of the most influential action films ever made, Akira Kurosawa’s Japanese epic Seven Samurai, centers on a village of desperate farmers who hire seven ronin (masterless samurai) to take on bandits who will return after the harvest to steal their crops.
The film itself was remade as The Magnificent Seven in 1960, starring Steve McQueen and Yul Brunner. That change from samurai to gunfighters shows how the story can travel across genres. The science-fiction film Battle Beyond the Stars also reworks the idea of assembling a small band to defend a vulnerable community.