Referents, Remakes and Re-quel

May is Geek Pride Month, and as proper cinephiles, saga addicts, comic nerds and proud owners of bedsheet-sized movie posters, at Siwon Men Care we’re feeling nostalgic… and, to be honest, a bit miffed. Seriously though: what the hell is happening to our classics? 

Sure, Hollywood's been milking the same cash cows dry for years – drier than Vin Diesel’s scalp. But lately, it’s reached next-level madness: remakes, reboots, re-quels and overdue sequels popping up everywhere... offering very little that's truly new. And of course, for our generation, it’s enough to make the beard bristle — both literally and figuratively.

RE-WHAT NOW?

A “re-quel” is a lovely Frankenstein’s monster of a remake and a sequel; it gives you a ‘new’ story, but full of winks, references and cameos from the original saga it’s riding on (Scream 2022 is practically the poster child for this). 
The re-quel doesn’t disown its past – it just slaps on some filters and sparkly edits to make it look shiny and new. And honestly, it works. If you're 20 and never saw Gladiator, Russell Crowe might mean nothing to you — but Gladiator II? With Paul Mescal, Pedro Pascal and Denzel Washington? You’ll eat it up from start to finish. 

THE REMAKE AS A GENERATIONAL SHORTCUT

Hollywood’s strategy is simple: it’s not that they lack imagination (well, maybe a bit), but that they need to hook newer generations. Teens today aren't going to sit through a 2.5-hour movie from 2000 without TikTok sounds or modern VFX wizardry. 
The solution? Same stories, shinier CGI, actors with Instagram followings, and scripts designed to spawn viral X (formerly Twitter) threads. 

And it’s not just films – it’s full-blown pop culture. Gen Z aren't going to pick up Tolkien, but they’ll binge The Rings of Power. They won’t swoon over Bridget Jones’s Diary, but they might be all over Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy, blissfully unaware it’s a sequel. Are there callbacks to the originals? Sure. Do they care? Not really. But that’s not the point — they’re here to feel, not to understand.
 

AND WHAT ABOUT US? WHERE ARE OUR HEROES NOW? 

We, who grew up with the original Disney classics, are left wincing at live-action woke versions of The Little Mermaid and Snow White. 
We cringe at Beetlejuice rebooting into a TikTok choreography fest, we raise eyebrows at Ghostbusters without '90s humour, and honestly — do we really need another Karate Kid? 

Our comfort now lies in watching our ageing heroes dragged across the digital screen, youth patched up with dodgy CGI. See Indiana Jones 5. Or The Matrix Resurrections — where Neo looks more like a yoga instructor than the Chosen One. Or Blade Runner 2049 — visually stunning, but leaving audiences divided: “Who the hell is Deckard?” / “Wait, is he human or not?” 

And you know what? It’s fine. 
We live in the era of recycled references. Every generation needs its own. Even if they’re just... recycled versions of ours. 

Because sure, your mind was blown by Mel Gibson’s Mad Max; but for an 18-year-old today, it’s all about Fury Road — Charlize Theron going full beast mode, while Tom Hardy barely says three words. Each generation gets their own post-apocalyptic madness.
 

IS THAT A BAD THING? NOT NECESSARILY. 

Not every re-quel or remake is a masterpiece (hi Alien: Covenant, what even was that?), but they’re an open door. A foundation. 
Maybe they'll lead some curious soul to discover the originals. Just like you may have found Star Wars via Episode I and then fell hard for the OG trilogy. Or started with Spider-Man: Homecoming and ended up crying over Tobey Maguire’s broken back in No Way Home. 

You've got your heroes, your classics, your catchphrases, your worn-out VHS tapes. And now, they’ll have theirs.

 

BOTTOM LINE?

Times change, classics evolve, and heroes get rebooted. It hurts a bit, sure — but it’s also amazing that these stories live on, morph, adapt and keep pulling new fans in. 

Whether it’s a remake, a re-quel or a reboot with more filters than plot... 
We’re still talking about the same epic tales. And that, friends, is the geekiest, the most beautiful — and the most inevitable thing in the world. 

Happy Geek Pride Day — and may the Force be with you. Even if it’s the 2.0 version. 

P.S.: If you don’t want to be swapped out like Russell Crowe for Paul Mescal, use Wowyoung: the anti-ageing serum for more seasons and sequels than Friends, One Piece and Star Wars combined.