I am getting pissed off. We live in a world where seemingly everything gets a reboot or remake or re-something but there are some properties that are being completely ignored when they should be given second lives. For example, Tremors, the delightful redneck horror-comedy from 1990. As we all know, the movie followed a group of residents in a small dusty town who were literally being eaten alive by ground-dwelling giant worms that would gobble up anything on two feet. The concept sounds silly and gruesome and it totally was. And it was also undeniably awesome.
The first film spawned multiple direct-to-VHS sequels but sadly nothing theatrical and, also sadly, nothing featuring Kevin Bacon, who led the first film alongside Fred Ward. For whatever reasons, Bacon didn’t return to the series until 2017, when the actor filmed a pilot for a Tremors TV series. Oddly, SyFy passed on the project which really makes one scratch one’s chin because that feels like a perfect show for the network and the general consensus was that the pilot showed promise and, most importantly, starred Bacon.
Well it sounds like Bacon is still on board to make more Tremors but he has definitely lost hope that it’ll happen. Speaking with Variety, he said this about a reboot or the franchise:
“I feel like we’ve explored the options. But, listen, you never know. Stranger things have happened”
Well, that doesn’t sound too promising.
Speaking of his role of Val McKee, Bacon said he wants to revisit the part because “it was the only character I really looked at and said, ‘I wanna know where he is 25 years later.’” Hey, me too, Kevin!
It is very, very surprising and a bit disheartening that Tremors isn’t being rebooted or reworked, especially in this day and age. We have gotten reboots of nearly everything under the sun and then there is the Tremors series, which has ample opportunity for growth. It has a fun base concept that contains a lot of room for development, a lot of gory directions it can go in and an A-list star who wants to return. What’s not to love? Yet, it just sits dormant on the shelf, waiting for someone to wise up and do it justice.