A New Wizard Of Oz Is In The Works, Will Be Gayer Than The Original Film

A New Wizard Of Oz Is In The Works, Will Be Gayer Than The Original Film
Image: The Wizard of Oz starred gay icon Judy Garland.

A new reimagined version of The Wizard of Oz, that will include LGBTQI characters, is set to begin production with Black-ish creator and writer Kenya Barris at the helm.

In an interview with Variety, Barris said, “The original was an allegory and a reflection of the way the world was at the time with things like the Great Depression and the Dust Bowl.”

“Now we’re going to turn a mirror on where we’re at right now and take disparate characters from the LGBTQI community, from different cultural communities and socioeconomic communities, and tell a story that reflects the world. I think this is the best time to do that,” Barris said. 

When asked who he envisioned casting in the upcoming film, Barris told Essence,“No one that you would think. I know people feel like they know what we’re going to do, so I want to do something totally different.” 

“Not different for the sake of being different, but for really telling the story in a new, different way,” he said. Barris admitted to Variety, “I’m nervous. Hopefully, my movie can last as long as the original does. Hopefully my movie comes out.”

New Film Based On Original Novel

Kenya Barris.

Barris will also pen the script for the film which is being produced by his production company, Khalabo Ink Society, for Warner Brothers. 

The new film is based upon L. Frank Baum’s original novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and not the 1939 classic film, which starred Judy Garland in her most iconic role.

Barris expressed his excitement about his new project on Instagram, saying, “I’m doing THE WIZARD OF OZ!!!!! Thank you everyone who made this happen…I have NO WORDS… other than it’s fuckin’ GO TIME!!!”

Fans Divided

 

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A post shared by Kenya Barris (@kenyabarris)

Unsurprisingly, some fans of the original film were not impressed by the news that the timeless classic was set to be remade, accusing the new film as “woke”.

“Well that’s one of the most perfect films ever to be totally ruined by going letting wizard of oz to go woke, why do they need to remake it? It’s a masterpiece,” said one Twitter user while another said, “More woke trash that is guaranteed to fail spectacularly at the box office, when will these idiots learn?” 

Another user tweeted,”Yeah, Hollywood has run out of content to plunder, exploit and ruin, so now they’re going for the classics. It’s time for fans to speak up. NOBODY wants this remake and Kenya Barris is an idiot if he ‘remakes’ Wizard of Oz. Nobody wants it. #DoNotRemakeWizardOfOz Pass it on!”

On Reddit, one user noted, “The old one seemed pretty gay to me.” 

The Wizard of Oz has long been seen as an LGBTQI  allegory with Ben Brantley of The New York Times calling Oz “a cornerstone in gay mythology.” 

Friends Of Dorothy

The Wizard of Oz

Dorothy’s journey to the Emerald City is often compared to the journey of gay men from small-town America to New York City and San Francisco, while the character of the Cowardly Lion calls himself a “sissy,” and a “dandy lion.” There is also the song “Come out, Come out, wherever you are” and for years LGBTQI people have referred to themselves as “friends of Dorothy,” as coded slang.

Barris, who received multiple Emmy nominations for his work on Black-ish, is currently in post-production of You People, his feature directorial debut, which stars Jonah Hill, Eddie Murphy, Julia Louis-Dreyfus and David Duchovny. 

Barris also wrote the screenplays for the remakes of The Witches, Shaft and an upcoming remake of White Men Can’t Jump, as well as creating America’s Next Top Model.

New Line Cinema is also working on its own remake of The Wizard of Oz with Nicole Kassell (Watchmen) set to take on directing duties. A release date has not been set for either of the announced remakes.



 

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