Ahh, nostalgia. In Japanese, the word is “natsukashii” – a bittersweet longing for something familiar. The feeling of well-worn boots signaling autumn or rewatching your favorite 80s action flick. These feelings, now more than ever, have inspired a wave of TV and film remakes from the 80s, 90s, and early 2000s set to hit screens over the next year.
The Nostalgia Factor
My guess? People are longing for the days when politics weren’t so front and center, diving deeper into their pathos of distraction and farther away from reality that seems increasingly overwhelming. The target audience seems to be Gen X, Xennials, and Millennials because those are the shows and films being greenlit today.
But these aren’t just remakes, they’re remakes of the remakes or reimaginings of familiar material. Many are even based on classic novels or earlier TV shows, doubling down on the built-in audiences that come with beloved characters.
Maybe this is part of a collective desire to return to a time when technology was exciting but not all-consuming. When we still had one foot in the analog world that felt simpler. When kids played safely outside, read comic books, and played board games instead of being glued to video games and social media.
What’s Being Remade
But I digress. Here’s a list of TV and film remakes, long-awaited sequels, and reimaginings making a comeback:
- Tron (1982, 2010, and now 2025)
- Gremlins 3 (sequel to the beloved ‘80/’90s franchise)
- Freakier Friday (sequel to the 2003 film)
- I Know What You Did Last Summer (a sequel to the 1997 original based on a book; the franchise also spawned a 2020s TV series)
- War of the Worlds (1953, 2005 and 2025, just to name a few)
- Blade (a reboot of the Wesley Snipes-led vampire hunter films. I’m not mad at this one at all.)
- Fantastic Four (2005, 2015 and now 2025)
- IT (the Stephen King horror classic has already been rebooted, but a new TV series is on the way)
Why Now?
So what’s driving this flood of reboots and remakes? What does it say about the TV and film industry as a whole?
According to a 2024 Nielsen report, 62% of streaming viewers rewatch older content at least monthly. In 2022, over 50% of major studio releases were sequels, reboots, or part of an existing franchise.
As household budgets tighten, it might feel safer to produce films with built-in audiences to help ensure people return to the theaters. Maybe these generations crave the comfort of films they already know.
I don’t have the answers, but I wonder: Has anyone in the industry admitted to using this strategy?
If it is indeed intentional, then the jury is still out on whether it’s going to be a winning strategy. We’ve seen some remakes flop, while others succeed.
Drop your thoughts in the comments.
Gina N. Anderson 