Great TV adaptations of hit movies
There has always been a rich tradition of trying to turn popular movies into TV shows. The results have been something of amixed bag. Stuff has a list of eight great ones we’re happy to recommend revisiting, or checking out for the first time.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer (Amazon Prime Video)
Disappointed with the Kristy Swanson and Luke Perrystarring black comedy horror that emerged in cinemas in 1992, writer Joss Whedon took a second, much darker stab five years later.
The supernatural adventures of Sunnydale’s ‘‘Scooby Gang’’ struck a chord with a generation, and made stars of Sarah Michelle Gellar, Alyson Hannigan and David Boreanaz.
Cobra Kai (Netflix)
This picks up The Karate Kid saga more than 30 years after the 1984 Under-18 Karate Tournament. While the victorious Daniel Larusso (Ralph Macchio) now owns a series of car yards, his vanquished opponent Johnny Lawrence (William Zabka) is stuck in a time warp.
By focusing on one of the original movies’ bad guys and the fallout from the franchise’s climactic moment, this smartly written and poignant drama is a surprisingly compelling watch.
The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance (Netflix)
A 10-part prequel to the 1982 puppet fantasy, if the original movie felt like Tolkien with puppets, this expanded tale is closer to Gerry Anderson’s Game of Thrones or Avatar.
There’s plenty of worldbuilding to get your head around in the opening episode, but it all sets up an entertaining and engrossing ride.
There’s an endearing and more earthly quality about the use of puppets and the vocal cast is, quite frankly, incredible.
Hannibal (Netflix)
More than two decades after Anthony Hopkins invited Jodie Foster around for dinner, Thomas Harris’ anti-hero came to the small screen in 2013 in the form of Danish actor Mads Mikkelsen.
While this premise had the psychiatrist teaming up with criminal profilerwill Graham (Hugh Dancy) to solve weekly murders, it was the larger picture that really compelled over its threeseason run.
M*A*S*H* (Disney+)
A show that successfully mixed anarchic and slapstick humourwith political messages and truly poignant drama. Robert Altman’s original 1970 black comedy is also worth seeking out on Disney+ for seeing how it all started and some of the key players were originally pitched.
Parenthood (Amazon Prime)
An initial attempt to bring Ron Howard’s 1989 family comedy to the small screen failed. Another crack a generation later resulted in a rare, compelling dramedy. Parenthood, starring Lauren Graham, celebrated family, but also tackled subjects like teenage alcohol, abortion, infidelity, adoption, racism, cancer and local politics.
Westworld (Neon)
This series has updated and opened out Michael Crichton’s 1973 theme-park-goes awry tale with a complex and labyrinthine look at the perils and ethics around artificial intelligence.
It helps significantly that it has amagnificent cast that includes Evan Rachel Wood, Thandiwe Newton and Jeffrey Wright.
What We Do in the Shadows (Neon)
A Staten Island-set spinoff of Taika Waititi and Jemaine Clement’s 2014 very Wellington mockumentary horror-comedy didn’t inspire confidence, however the result has been a triumph.
In creating a new household of disparate bloodsuckers, they have transported their unique sensibilities and humour to a new audience.
Unknown actors bring their characters to life without being weighed down by additional baggage. – James Croot