Entertainment
21 Women On The Next Franchise They Wanna "Ruin"
One of the most frustrating pop culture conversations of the last few years has been the "controversy" over the all-female reboot of Ghostbusters . From the moment it was first announced that Paul Feig would be making a new version of the '80s franchise starring all women, fans freaked — some with excitement and anticipation, and others with, well, a bit less enthusiasm. Many male "fans" of the original (and even some actors) took to social media to voice their complaints over the reboot, arguing that, due to the gender of its stars, the movie wouldn't be funny, and that its very existence was ruining their childhoods. Well, bad news for those haters: if the women below have anything to say about it, the new Ghostbusters might just be the first of many male-led franchises women will "ruin" by remaking.
From Indiana Jones to James Bond, there are plenty of traditionally male-driven franchises that could potentially be remade with an all-female cast, or at least a female lead, if Hollywood decided to give it a try. And why wouldn't they? Despite the haters, Ghostbusters is on track to be a box office success, and the argument that women aren't capable of leading blockbusters is losing steam quickly, thanks to the success of films like Spy and The Hunger Games. It wouldn't be a shock if before long, more male-led franchises are remade — or "ruined," in the eyes of haters — with women in the lead roles, and the 21 women listed here have a few suggestions in mind.
Jenn, 24
"I definitely think it's time for Indiana Jones to be a woman. Why not? We might have a female president and we have female ghostbusters. It's about time for a female archeologist/treasure hunter. Put Emily Blunt or Margot Robbie in the khakis and be done with it!"
Martha, 24
"The Ocean's movies, because a badass ring of ladies taking down Vegas and getting super rich in the process is why gender-swapped movies were invented. Let someone be the female Brad Pitt or George Clooney. Let J. Law and Melissa McCarthy come together in a movie, please. Besides, as a franchise with a bunch of men in it, it presents the most casting opportunities for women."
Lia, 27
"The Star Wars movies... oh, wait. That's already happening with a badass female lead (Rey) and another to come (Jyn Erso)!"
Jamie, 26
"I would like a ladies-only version of the Power Rangers franchise. Despite having girl rangers, it was (almost) always the guys leading the team (primarily the red ranger and/or the green/white ranger) and I think it would be interesting to see how dynamic changes if all the rangers are girls and on equal footing."
Casey, 30
"I'd honestly like to see all-female remakes of classic gangster movies like Goodfellas, Scarface, or The Godfather. So many "bros" out there worship those movies as some sort of holy grail, and the machismo in them all is pretty heavy. I think turning them into all-female casts might just make the misogynists heads explode."
Kelsea, 28
"Indiana Jones movies, because I always wanted to grow up to be Indy (my guidance counselor talked me out of that Archaeology degree, for shame) and since no one can actually be Harrison Ford, it would actually make sense to just reboot the franchise with a kickass lady also named Indiana instead of trying make Ford recapture the magic. (And I am ready to sass anyone tries to tell me that Angelina Jolie's Tomb Raider movies already did this.)"
Meg, 28
"I know it's just recently been rebooted, but I'd like an all-lady turtles Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles franchise. Just because I'd really like to hear the defense that only *male* turtles can do ninja and eat pizza."
Gaby, 34
"THE PRESIDENCY. If that doesn't work, let's say the Indiana Jones films. Because I grew up wanting to marry Indy, so I'd love the next generation of little girls to grow up knowing that they can be Indy, too. (Plus, let's be real — the movies have a great premise, but they're so racist, so it would be great to remake them as something that modern audiences can actually enjoy.)"
Bustle reached out for comment from Paramount, but hasn't heard back at this time.
Rachel, 28
"The Home Alone movies, because a girl would have gotten herself into much more interesting trouble."
Kathryn, 27
"The Men in Black franchise! The original was one of the first PG-13 movies I saw when I was younger and I always thought I'd be pretty great at battling aliens. Also, the Power Rangers movies, TBH. The yellow one was my favorite and the rest kind of annoyed me but I'd be willing to watch an all-girl squad take down robots."
Cristina, 24
"The Sandlot films! Because women — especially young girls — play sports, too, and I think that's important to show on screen. But also, I would just secretly love to see a group of adolescent girls being totally and hilariously irreverent, getting muddy in the sandlot, and just having a good time with their friends."
Liesje, 34
"I'd have to go with the Indiana Jones series, 'cause if it had been a bad-ass chick "fighting sword fights without a sword," then maybe, just maybe, I would have followed my childhood dream of becoming an archeologist."
Anna, 25
"I would kill for a female James Bond. I want to see the badass gadgets she gets, the sexy men she beds, the yachts she destroys by throwing lavish parties on, then exits by diving off the stern into the ocean to pursue the bad guy (or girl)."
Emma, 25
"The Star Wars movies! OH WAIT ;)))) I would kill for a ladyship of the rings, TBH."
Allison, 24
"I'd love to see an all female cast of the Ocean's franchise because not only can women pull of a heist like that, but they'd do it in way less time and way less movies."
Julie, 32
"JAMES BOND. I'd love to see a movie — an action flick like James Bond, or a comedy like Swingers, Fletch, Major League, Wedding Crashers — where the lead roles of sexually hungry lothario dudes are played by women. Ladies can enjoy and pursue casual sex too!"
Suzanne, 25
"THE LORD OF THE RINGS MOVIES, because epic fantasy has a huge sexism problem and has been dominated by white men for basically ever. So I'd like to see a fellowship made entirely of badass women. And then I will drink the menz tearz out of the jumbo size special edition cup they make for it."
Kate, 31
"The Sandlot series, starring Mo'ne Davis. Because girls are more than just the lifeguard you can kiss without consent."
Kylie, 27
"The Outsiders isn't a franchise, but I feel like that book was such a coming-of-age must-read in high school and it would be f*cking awesome to see it rewritten (or even get a modern movie makeover) with women at its center."
Celia, 26
"The Sandlot movies — because girls like sports and adventure, too."
Bianca, 31
"The Monty Python movies' signature falsetto voices (because men play female roles) are hilarious in their classic movies and sketches, but I'd love to see what a group of women would do with dry British humor combined with outlandish costumes."
Hollywood, you've got some work to do.
Images: Columbia; Giphy