Remakes, reboots, sequels, and prequels rule the big screen as the filmmakers know that the films will be bankable. Oftentimes, a film is remade to cash in its previous popularity; according to a report, it is suggested that in 2005, 17% of the top-grossing movies of Hollywood were remakes.
Some movies gain so much popularity that they are remade multiple times across different film industries and in different languages.
Here’s a list of movies that were remade more than once, both in Hollywood and Bollywood:
- A Star Is Born
This is one movie that has been remade time and again, both in Hollywood and Bollywood. The original film released in 1937 featured Janet Gaynor and Fredric March in the lead roles. The story followed Esther Victoria Blodgett (Gaynor), an aspiring actress who comes to Hollywood and meets Norman Maine (March), a fading film star who subsequently helps launch her career as a Hollywood star.
This film has been remade a total of four times in the English language – a television adaptation starring Kathleen Crowley and Conrad Nagel in 1951, and as movies in 1954 starring Judy Garland and James Mason, in 1976 with Barbra Streisand and Kris Kristofferson, and in 2018 with Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper.
The 1976 version of this film was unofficially remade in Bollywood, releasing as Aashiqui 2 in 2013, starring Shraddha Kapoor and Aditya Roy Kapur.
Barring the original movie, all of the remakes were musicals. Esther’s character was portrayed as an aspiring singer, and Norman as an alcohol addict and famous music star who helped her start her music career.
- School For Scoundrels
This 1960 British comedy film starred Ian Carmichael and Terry-Thomas in the lead roles. It has been directly remade twice – in Bollywood as Chhoti Si Baat, starring Amol Palekar, Vidya Sinha, Ashok Kumar, Asrani, Dharmendra, and Hema Malini. In Hollywood, the film was remade in 2006 with the same name and starred Billy Bob Thornton and Jon Heder.
The 2005 American romantic comedy film Hitch starring Will Smith and Eva Mendes is said to have been inspired from Chhoti Si Baat, as they feature similar plotlines and themes. The film follows Smith’s character Alex “Hitch” Hitchens, whose profession is to teach men how to woo women – he calls himself a “date doctor”.
Hitch, in turn, inspired the 2007 Bollywood film Partner starring Salman Khan and Govinda in the lead roles. Khan plays the role of Prem, the love guru, and Govinda plays the client who wants to woo his boss, played by Katrina Kaif.
- Cactus Flower
This 1969 American comedy film starring Walter Matthau, Ingrid Bergman, and Goldie Hawn was the ninth highest-grossing film in Hollywood that year. Goldie Hawn also won an Academy Award for her performance. This movie has been remade several times in different film industries of the world.
Bollywood made an unauthorised adaptation of this film in 2005. Maine Pyaar Kyun Kiya? was directed by David Dhawan and featured Salman Khan, Sushmita Sen, Katrina Kaif with Sohail Khan, Arshad Warsi, Beena Kak, Rajpal Yadav, and Isha Koppikar in supporting roles.
The 2011 romantic comedy Just Go With It starring Adam Sandler, Jennifer Aniston, and Brooklyn Decker is another remake of the 1969 film. The movie received negative views but was a box-office success.
The films follow a love triangle between a doctor, his assistant/manager, and a third woman who is the initial girlfriend, but the doctor and his assistant end up getting married in all three films.
- The Italian Job
This 1969 British comedy-caper film follows Charlie Choker, a criminal who gets released from prison and sets out to rob gold bullions from an armoured truck. Peter Collinson directed the film and Michael Caine portrayed the role of Charlie.
This was remade in Hollywood with the same name in 2003. It featured an ensemble cast of Mark Wahlberg, Charlize Theron, Edward Norton, Jason Statham, Seth Green, Mos Def, and Donald Sutherland. The director F. Gary Gray described the film as “an homage to the original.” A sequel, The Brazilian Job, has reportedly been in development but is yet to be produced.
The 2012 Hindi film Players was an official remake of the 2003 film The Italian Job, featuring an ensemble cast of Abhishek Bachchan, Bobby Deol, Vinod Khanna, Bipasha Basu, Neil Nitin Mukesh, Sonam Kapoor, Sikandar Kher, and Omi Vaidya. While the American film had been highly successful, its Bollywood counterpart received mixed reviews and was a box-office failure.
- The Unfaithful Wife
La Femme infidèle, or The Unfaithful Wife is a 1969 French film. It was commercially unsuccessful but praised by critics.
It was remade in 2002 as Unfaithful, starring Richard Gere, Diane Lane, Olivier Martinez, Erik Per Sullivan, Chad Lowe, and Dominic Chianese. This American erotic-thriller follows the story of a couple living in the suburbs of NYC, whose peaceful life is disrupted when the wife gets entangled in an extramarital affair.
Directed by Anurag Basu, Unfaithful was remade as Murder in 2004. It starred Emraan Hashmi, Ashmit Patel, and Mallika Sherawat in the lead roles and was commercially successful.
- I Know Where I’m Going!
This 1945 British romance film follows the story of a young and independent girl who goes away from home in order to marry her lover. On the way, she meets another man, and subsequently, they end up together.
This story is said to have inspired Imtiaz Ali’s super-successful film Jab We Met. This romantic drama was released in 2007 and featured Shahid Kapoor and Kareena Kapoor Khan in the lead. Love U Zindagi – Geet Ke Funde, a Star Plus serial featuring Sidharth Shukla and Pavitra Punia premiered in 2011, and was loosely based on this film.
The 2010 American rom-com film Leap Year is loosely based on I Know Where I’m Going!, and Amy Adams and Matthew Goode featured as the lead couple.
- Rangeela
This critically acclaimed and super-hit 1995 Bollywood film featured Aamir Khan, Urmila Matondkar, and Jackie Shroff in the lead roles. It was directed by Ram Gopal Verma and followed a love triangle between Mili, an aspiring actor, her childhood friend Munna, and a famous actor Raj Kamal.
The 2004 American romantic comedy film Win a Date with Tad Hamilton! is said to be loosely inspired from Rangeela. The film featured Kate Bosworth, Topher Grace, Josh Duhamel, Gary Cole, Ginnifer Goodwin, Sean Hayes, and Nathan Lane in prominent roles.
Break Ke Baad starring Deepika Padukone and Imran Khan, was released in 2010, and is said to be loosely based on Rangeela too.
There are many other films that have been remade multiple times as well, enough for a second compilation!
