Summary
The Longest Yard will hit the big screen again as it is remade for a second time. Starring Burt Reynolds, it was originally a 1974 film directed by Robert Aldrich. It was then remade 31 years later as an Adam Sandler movie of the same name in 2005, in which Reynolds played a coach in place of his former role as the team’s quarterback.
Now, The Longest Yard is set to get yet another adaptation. According to Deadline, a new remake is in the works at Paramount, the same studio behind the previous versions. The latest Longest Yard will be written by Rodney Barnes, who served as an executive producer on HBO’s Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty.
How Can The Longest Yard Change for The Better?
Both renditions of The Longest Yard focus on prison inmates who form a football team. In the 1974 version, Reynolds plays quarterback Paul “Wrecking” Crewe, who is sentenced to 18 months of prison and puts together a team to beat the prison guards. Sandler’s The Longest Yard follows a largely identical plot, with Sandler taking the role once held by Reynolds.
In both versions, The Longest Yard is played for laughs, as the football team bumbles their way through prison. While this is likely to be maintained in the latest version, the increased awareness of the prison system today could lead to a different spin on the movie. The plot will more than likely stay the same, but it is possible that the next The Longest Yard takes a more critical look at the prison system, even if through the lens of comedy.
The Longest Yard remake has yet to announce a cast, but the production team news is a good sign. Barnes most recently worked on sports series Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty, showing his competency in creative works surrounding athletics. Barnes alone bodes well for the remake’s success, and hopefully, he will be able to collaborate with an equally-acclaimed team. Time will tell as more news about The Longest Yard develops.
Source: Deadline
