We’ll be the first to state that there are too many reboots going on in Hollywood right now (85 by our last count), and most of them just seem unnecessary (Big Trouble in Little China? Really?). However, despite their reputation for ruining beloved and nostalgic franchises, reboots aren’t always a bad thing. Just look at the new version of It, or the new Planet of the Apes movies, or Christopher Nolan’s Batman movies. Sometimes reboots are great; and once in a while they’re even better than the originals. And since the film industry shows no signs of slowing down when it comes to resurrecting old franchises, we might as well get used to reboots being a part of life. So with that in mind, we’ve come up with a list of 23 classic sci-fi, horror, and fantasy films that we actually think could use a reboot.
1. Friday The 13th
Unlike fellow ’80s horror icon Freddy Krueger, Jason Voorhees isn’t dependent on the actor portraying him, and a fresh start for the character could be just what Camp Crystal Lake needs to be fun and scary again.
2. Needful Things
The original adaptation of this Stephen King book about a shop run by the devil wasn’t nearly as good as it could have been, so it’s time to right that wrong.
3. Salem’s Lot
Another King adaptation, this one was great, but like It, Salem’s Lot was a TV miniseries. It’s time to give this horrific tale the theatrical release it deserves.
4. Pet Sematary
Yet another King film, and one of the best, this might be the author’s scariest work — so what better time than now to remake it with the public nostalgic for King stories?
5. Firestarter
The fourth King film on our list, and a big influence on Stranger Things, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to see how this tale of a dangerous government project gone wrong could really do well in the hands of one of today’s more imaginative directors.
6. The Philadelphia Experiment
Who doesn’t want to see a new version of this time-traveling take on the legendary World War II invisible ship experiment?
7. The Lost Boys
A modern update on this vampire tale with less leather and fewer mullets would be greatly appreciated.
8. Children of the Corn
The final Stephen King movie on our list (promise!), and one that could become a true horror classic with a modern update. The bones of the story are great, but the 1984 movie version is quite dated.
9. Dragonslayer
Given the massive popularity of Game of Thrones, there’s no time like the present to bring back this dark adult fantasy.
10. Highlander
We know, we know, “There can only be one,” but there’s already a TV show and a bunch of movies in the now dormant franchise, so they might as well start over with a new immortal Scottish badass.
11. The 7th Voyage of Sinbad
Adventure films are exceedingly rare today, so we’d love to see this classic hero of the Seven Seas return with some modern special effects.
12. Slaughterhouse-Five
A guy is abducted by aliens during World War II and spends his life bouncing through time — just give this to Christopher Nolan and be done with it already.
13. One Million Years B.C.
The reboot may not feature Raquel Welch, and cavemen aren’t nearly the pop culture mainstays they were in the ’60s, but a new version of this silly adventure film featuring humans battling dinosaurs on ancient Earth would be a blast.
14. The Legend of Boggy Creek
Sometimes credited as the father of found footage horror films, we sure wouldn’t mind seeing an updated and more polished version of the only scary Bigfoot movie ever made.
15. It Came From Outer Space
The building of tension after a spaceship crash lands on Earth is masterfully done in this 1953 classic, but a modern retelling done by the right people could become an Oscar contender.
16. The Black Hole
One of the darkest movies Disney’s ever done, this trippy sci-fi epic deserves a new look with some fresh special effects.
17. Tron
Another Disney classic, this one already received a sequel/soft-reboot in 2010’s Tron: Legacy, but a hard reboot — with cutting-edge special effects like the original — has to happen in order for the true blockbuster potential of this franchise to be realized.
18. Soylent Green
Assuming that not everyone knows the big twist at the end of this 1973 dystopian film (younger viewers won’t), a remake could be quite fitting for our current political climate.
19. Logan’s Run
In a time when The Hunger Games is one of the most successful franchises of all time, we see no reason why a big-budget remake of this sci-fi epic wouldn’t be a massive blockbuster.
20. The Last Starfighter
Why let Star Wars have all the fun when it comes to weird alien species? We say the more crazy space-set franchises, the better.
21. Buckaroo Banzai
The delightful weirdness of this film has always deserved a bigger audience, and a well-done remake could get the property the attention it deserves.
22. Explorers
They don’t make kids movies like they did in the ’80s, so a new version of this out-there sci-fi adventure could become a touchstone for today’s good movie-starved young generation.
23. Night of the Comet
The zombie genre has practically been killed by The Walking Dead and countless imitations, so now’s the perfect time to resurrect it with this clever sci-fi take on the monsters.
