Wizard of Oz sequel/remake – who’s surprised?

Admittedly, we’ve heard about these before, but now a big company’s involved.

It’s probably only been a few seconds since everyone made loads of cash over the colorful, 3D CGI explosion that is Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland. Naturally, Warner Bros. are now looking to revisit The Wizard of Oz, with an eye for probable franchising, considering that Harry Potter only has two films left.

The LA Times states that WB are looking at two existing projects, aiming to help develop one of them:

Oz - a film based on a script by Darren Lemke (Shrek Forever After), being produced by Temple Hill…the guys behind Twilight.

Wizard of Oz (untitled as of yet – I think) – based on a screenplay by Josh Olson (A History of Violence), this take involves Dorothy’s granddaughter returning to Oz to “fight evil,” and would potentially involve creative input from Todd McFarlane, who is a producer on the project.

While I have Technicolorful feelings towards the avalanche of remakes burying everything else, I’d actually be interested in the latter project, provided it took a more violent approach that separated it from the other films, and didn’t stick to the confines of marketable teen fantasy (see: Twilight, Percy Jackson, The Seeker - Harry Potter often manages to strike a balance between darkness and lower age ratings). Suffice to say, I don’t really want to see a Wizard of Oz franchise from the producers behind Twilight.

I’m honestly not sure which option WB is more likely to go with – I would say the Twilight one, but I’m not sure if the presence of Olson and McFarlane means that their Wizard of Oz project is as dark as it sounds. But please Warner Bros. – choose their one anyway!

P.S. I doubt any future Oz project will keep the songs. Or have songs. At all.