Remake Fun: Who Would You Cast In The Remake of "Baby Jane?"

It was announced at Comic-Con two weeks ago that action director Walter Hill would direct a remake of the iconic Robert Aldrich thriller Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?

This is a bad, bad idea for many reasons.  First, the original is a masterpiece, with Bette Davis as the crazed ex-child star Baby Jane Hudson, who tortures her crippled sister Blanche (Joan Crawford).  The 1962 thriller was one of the few horror films to garner Oscar nominations—most notably Davis’s twelfth acting nod.  (She would have won if it wasn’t for Anne Bancroft and The Miracle Worker.)

Director Robert Aldrich was known for his macho action films, such as The Dirty Dozen and The Longest Yard.  But he was also a sensitive director of "women's films," and he brought out great performances in Baby Jane, Hush...Hush Sweet Charlotte, The Killing of Sister George, and others.  Director Walter Hill (48 Hrs., The Warriors) once said, "Every film I've made has been a western."  Walter Hill for Baby Jane?  I don't see it.

And what about the casting?  Even Vanessa and Lynn Redgrave couldn't erase the memory of Davis and Crawford in a lackluster 1991 TV remake.

Some films don't need to be remade.  Baby Jane is certainly one of them.  But as long as Warner's is going to do it, let's throw our two cents in and suggest some casting ideas:

Meryl Streep and Glenn Close:  Who better to play the demented Jane Hudson than our favorite psychopathic bunny boiler Glenn Close?  And wouldn't it be fun to see Streep get the stuffing knocked out of her?

Jessica Lange and Sigourney Weaver:  After her knockout Southern-dipped horror performance in American Horror Story, I could easily see Jessica Lange as Jane.  Weaver would be one of the few actresses who could hold her own with the two-time Oscar winner.

Angelica Huston and Barbara Hershey:  Huston has that classic Gothic look (see: The Addams Family) that would be perfect for this film.  The great Ms. Hershey (Beaches, Once Upon a Time) would be perfect to elicit our sympathy as the trapped Blanche.

So what do you think?  Anyone else pop into mind?  (If Elizabeth Taylor were still alive, I certainly would have put her on the list).  Give me your best ideas.

Comic-Con: Walter Hill Tackles Whatever Happened to Baby Jane Remake: http://www.deadline.com/2012/07/comic-con-walter-hill-tackles-whatever-happened-to-baby-jane-remake/

To purchase the original 1962 classic, click here:

In Appreciation: Bette Davis Interviewed by Dick Cavett

I stumbled across this priceless interview that Dick Cavett conducted with the legendary Bette Davis.

Ms. Davis was always a "broad" or a "dame" in the classic sense of the word. Not a stunning beauty, but a captivating, driven women who could play pool with the men and smack another woman in the face just because she needed it.  In this interview dating back to 1972, Ms. Davis is very open and honest about her relationship with Hollywood:


On her relationship with Warner Bros.: "I finished 18 years at Warners. Built a lot of soundstages there. Never got a letter of goodbye. Ended up on the back lot with the soundman...and a producer having drinks until dawn. That's how I left the Warner lot."


On what mattered the most at the job: "Actors are sucker for a good part. And just (to hear someone) saying: 'You did a good job, Bette.' Never, never never."


On her fights with the studio: "I never fought for money until many years later--I fought for parts!"


To see this rare interview with the one-of-a-kind Ms. Davis:

To purchase one of Bette Davis' most memorable films, All About Eve on Blu-Ray, click here: