The good news here is that Fantasy Island looks like it could be a fun horror movie. The bad news is that they are calling it Fantasy Island. This is the second time a cult-classic TV series has been rebooted in the last year as a gritty horror film. The first time it happened was with the regrettable horror movie version of The Banana Splits. Now it’s happening with Fantasy Island. At some point, you change something enough that it’s no longer faithful enough to the source material to be considered a reboot. When that happens, just change the name. The idea of a horror film with Michael Pena as the star is more than enough to draw in the box office. Tying it loosely to a classic property just because it helps with marketing is cynical, lazy, and sad.
In Blumhouse’s new spin on Fantasy Island, the enigmatic Mr. Roarke makes the secret dreams of his lucky guests come true at a luxurious but remote tropical resort. But when the fantasies turn into nightmares, the guests have to solve the island’s mystery in order to escape with their lives. Directed by Jeff Wadlow, Fantasy Island is written by Jeff Wadlow & Chris Roach & Jillian Jacobs and is produced by Jason Blum and Marc Toberoff. Directed by: Jeff Wadlow Written by: Jeff Wadlow & Chris Roach & Jillian Jacobs Based upon the Television Series Created by: Gene Levitt Produced by: Jason Blum Marc Toberoff Executive Produced by: Jeff Wadlow Couper Samuelson Jeanette Volturno Cast: Michael Peña, Maggie Q, Lucy Hale, Austin Stowell, Portia Doubleday, Jimmy O. Yang, Ryan Hansen, And Michael Rooker.