Because I can't say it any better than the fans do themselves, I'm going straight to the quote:

We feel young hollywood actress Tara Reid deserves a role in the upcoming Platinum Dunes remake of A Nightmare On Elm Street. She is a very talented and intelligent actor, we feel a a major role, in a major film will help revive her acting career. We feel she would be a truly great addition to the cast. Please truly consider her for a part, and check out how many people would love to see her in you're film.

This is no joke. In fact, 848 friggin people have signed this petition, as of lunchtime, as I write this. Now I understand Tara Reid having fans, and even enjoying her work. However, I am endlessly amused when fans try to assign attributes that just don't fit, like "very talented and intelligent actor." Okay, maybe those 848 think she's talented, but do her roles, or personal life, make "intelligent" one of her main characteristics? Maybe she is, but that's certainly not what she presents to the public.

So, should Tara Reid get to travel to Elm Street, or should she just head back to Salem's Lot? (Her first acting gig was in A Return to Salem's Lot.)

[via JoBlo]

When an established character or film is finding new life in a remake, I find it very, very rare that I'm ever agreeable, let alone impressed, with who the casting honchos come up with. The last time I oohed, it was over Christian Bale in Batman Begins -- because my friend and I had spent one long car ride casting every superhero with their perfect actor/actress counterpart, and Bale was our Dark Knight pick. But this time, I didn't come up with the replacement, and while it's just a very vague rumor, I wouldn't mind it being fact.

A Cinema Blend source says that Michael Rosenbaum has been lunching with Michael Bay. The assumption: this could mean that he's talking with the director about the upcoming Nightmare on Elm Street remake. It's a huge guess, but it's one I'd be quite happy with. Oh yeah, and Rosenbaum is the baldie Lex Luthor in Smallville.

While I don't watch the show, I can completely see the actor take over Robert Englund's shoes -- and this is coming from someone who adores the series -- ever since I found my kid self at a Just the Ten of Us taping with a whole slew of Nightmare cast members. I loved the humor mashed in with creepiness and some absolutely ridiculous deaths -- like Brooke Theiss' demise by bug.

I think Rosenbaum could make it work, but what do you think?

The Sundance Flu, The Sundance Cold, The Sundance Fever ... how about The Sundance I Feel Like Complete Sh*t ...

Looks like J.J. Abrams does plan to go all Wonder Years for his Star Trek flick! Coming Soon reports that 11-year-old (about to be 12) Jimmy Bennett has landed a role as Young Kirk in Abrams' upcoming Star Trek film, due out at Christmas. Bennett has played a little kid in films like Hostage, Firewall, Poseidon and Evan Almighty. A young Spock will also be featured, leading this writer to believe both characters will appear in the film and talk about how much they "like, like" Winnie Cooper. Fingers crossed.

The Hollywood Reporter has confirmed (what was already previously reported) that New Line is in talks with Platinum Dunes to re-launch the franchise that helped secure their name as one of the big players in town, A Nightmare on Elm Street. Dunes partners Michael Bay, Brad Fuller and Andrew Form will produce, and a writer will be hired once the strike comes to an end. Since it's a full-out re-do, expect Robert Englund to not play Freddy Krueger, though we imagine he'll still have a role in the film (perhaps as part of Freddy's family). God bless the guy they get to fill his shoes; he'll have to convince tons of hardcore fans that he's the real deal. Dunes and New Line are also prepping a re-launch of the Friday the 13th franchise, with Marcus Nispel directing.

And finally, though it's not really a fanboy film (but I needed one more thing to throw in here, so cut me some slack), Moviehole reports that director Phillip Noyce has officially dropped out of that planned Amelia Earhart biopic starring Hilary Swank. MH spoke with Noyce, who gave the following reason for his departure: "I had worked on Amelia for 5 months from July to end of December 2007, finding all the locations and extensively storyboarding the flying sequences - When it didn't appear that the film was going ahead, I had to make a painful decision to move on and returned to a project that had long fascinated me... Mary Queen of Scots. Scarlett Johansson will play Mary in a film to be shot on location in Scotland, England and Ireland during 2008." Apparently Swank is still attached to the film, which we all thought was moving ahead as planned (script issues, maybe), so we'll keep you updated and let you know what happens.

You can't keep a good monster dead. Bloody Disgusting is reporting that New Line Cinema is "actively developing another Nightmare on Elm Street movie." Bloody Disgusting broke the news nearly two years ago that New Line was planning a prequel to the horror series that began in 1984; as Scott Weinberg posted, it would have covered "the back-story of the pre-dead Freddy Krueger, his unseemly relationship with numerous small children, and the neighborhood parents who strike back ... thereby creating an undead boogeyman who'll haunt them for the next 8 movies." Robert Englund, who played Freddy Krueger, and versatile director John McNaughton were attached to the project.

Those plans have reportedly been scrapped. Instead of an origin story, like the recent Halloween "re-imagination" perpetrated by Rob Zombie, the new Nightmare will be ... something else. New Line is throwing around ideas, apparently, without anything being locked down. Of course, with the ongoing writers' strike, they can't write anything down or have any writer pitch them anything. I imagine a roomful of bedraggled execs, some of whom have never seen any of the Nightmare movies, sitting around a big table, drinking stale coffee, and trying to come up with a new story line. "Can we send him into space in the future? How about if he terrorizes a big city? What if we do it from the POV of a bunch of kids with video cameras?"

In related Freddy Krueger news, Bloody Disgusting's source at New Line says that there are no immediate plans for a sequel to Freddy vs. Jason. Note: the emphasis is on "immediate," which sounds to me like they're putting this on the back burner and maybe allowing a few more years to pass before resurrecting the deranged duo.

Since Monday was a holiday, I now present you with the rare (but often more interesting) Tuesday Morning Poll. Because Tuesday just doesn't get enough lovin' these days. So everyone seems a tad floored that Rob Zombie's re-imagined Halloween scored $31 million over the Labor Day weekend. Me? I kind of saw it coming. As much as audiences have been turned off by horror as of late (or, more specifically, "torture porn"), it's obvious the genre still has its fans -- especially those searching for some nostalgia. Tack on a director with a name (sort of), call it a re-imagining of the original, and people flocked to see it. Of course, this now means we have officially landed in the re-imagined era. If there's one thing that $31 million haul did tell us, it was that we should expect a lot more films to be re-imagined (or whatever the hell they're calling it) in the near future. I wouldn't be surprised if work starts right away on reviving the Friday the 13th and Nightmare on Elm Street franchises in the same fashion. Heck, imagine how many rumor posts we'll have to write when they start searching for someone to replace Robert Englund as Freddy Kruger?

But it's not just horror that's caught the re-imagined bug. Next summer we're already in store for The Incredible Hulk -- a film that isn't necessarily a sequel to Ang Lee's version, but an updated, re-imagined thingy. Christopher Nolan has already found success with his re-imagined Batman franchise, and now it's just a "wait and see" game as far as what the future holds. And that's exactly what I'm looking to find out from you today -- what does the future hold? Are there other films that are ripe for re-imagining? And what's the difference between a remake and a film that's been re-imagined? Do you prefer one over the other?

So, I ask you: What's your take on the re-imagined era? And are there any films that you'd personally like to see updated and re-imagined for today's audience?

After years in the "talking" stages, Frank Darabont is finally about to step up and direct a big-screen version of Stephen King's novella The Mist, which is a pretty kick-ass story, if you ask me. Our own Matt Bradshaw reported on the deal a few weeks back, but I just recently came across a rather excellent video interview with Mr. Darabont over at IGN Movies. And I thought it was worthy of sharing. That's how much I care.

During the chat, Franky D (who also adapted King's Shawshank Redemption and Green Mile for the silver screen, in addition to a 1983 short based on The Woman in the Room) discusses why he's keen to do lean 'n' mean monster movies, the inspirations he earned from Danny Boyle, and the various differences between doing "genre" and straight-ish dramatic pieces.

For those who question Frank Darabont's genre skills, let's not forget that he wrote the only really good Freddy sequel (Dream Warriors), an extra-nasty remake sequel (The Fly 2), and a goo-monster remake that's seriously underrated (The Blob). He also wrote Kenneth Branagh's Frankenstein re-do, which is a horror in multiple senses of the word.

And I don't think it's been "officially" announced yet, but generally-accepted buzz indicates that Thomas Jane will be tapped to play the lead in The Mist. Cool.

Halloween is a great time of year if you love horror movies. I'm not what you'd call a horror buff -- I'm way too much of a weenie. I'm the person you see at horror flicks hunched way down in my seat with my jacket ready to hide my face in if it gets overwhelming. Plus, I have a very active imagination, and when I see a really scary movie it stays in my head, and then late at night when I'm taking a relaxing bubble bath after the kids have gone down for the night, I'll hear the voice of Pennywise the Clown giggling in the drain, telling me how "we all float down here." God, I hate clowns.

Nonetheless, there is something shiveringly delicious about being scared just the right amount, isn't there? That rush of adrenaline, that thrill of being in danger, tempered by the knowledge that we are perfectly safe in a theater seat with a bag of popcorn and a box of Whoppers to help see us through. Here are some horror flicks that really scared me, that stayed in my head somewhere to haunt me late at night, to come creeping out of dark shadows. They're scary, but oh so good ...

The Changeling -- This is my favorite horror movie ever. George C. Scott stars as a writer who, after the death of his wife and daughter in a tragic accident, rents a spooky mansion. All by himself. Right away, creepy things start happening -- and I mean creepy. This film is packed with send-a-shiver-up-your-spine moments: The spooky voice of Joseph, a ghost child recorded on tape during a seance, audible only when it's played at the right speed; a ball bouncing down the stairs; visions of a bathtub with a drowned child. Look! I have goosebumps just thinking about it! And yet this is one scary movie I can watch over and over again. Once you've seen this movie, you'll never look at wheelchairs the same way again.

Big fan of Freddy Krueger but way too young to have enjoyed his debut on the silver screen? (How I envy you.) Well here's some good news: On September 20th & 21st, Wes Craven's original A Nightmare on Elm Street just might be playing at a multiplex near you, complete with a brand-new digital upgrade AND a little featurette called "Freddy's Best Kills."

These screenings are, of course, promotional events for New Line's upcoming Elm Street Special Edition (which streets on September 26th), but if you're a horror fan who really enjoys the moviegoing experience, I highly recommend you buy a ticket or two. (DVDs are awesome and all, but there's nothing like seeing Freddy on the big screen!)

I've already snagged a pair of tickets to a Philadelphia screening, despite the fact that, yes, I was in attendance during Freddy's first opening weekend way back in 1984. That scene where Fred's arms get all stretched out and elongated ... yeah, that gave me nightmares for about a week. Plus, hey, it's a chance to see Johnny Depp's cinematic debut -- right before he gets sucked into Freddy's hell-bed!

So you thought that after buying that 8-disc mega-huge DVD set a few years back that you were done giving Freddy Krueger your DVD dollars? Well, HA to that, says New Line Cinema, who'll soon be offering us an all-new Infinifilm Edition of Wes Craven's original A Nightmare on Elm Street.

Boasting new documentaries, featurettes, and the cinematicus-interruptus goodness that is Infinifilm, the new-fangled Elm Street DVD will hit the shelves on September 26th. No word on the sequels just yet, but if sales are good, you just know you'll be forking out another 16 bucks when The Dream Child: Infinifilm shows up. Us horror fans are so damn loyal it makes the studio marketing brigades just drool out loud.

Also in New Line news, as Martha reported back in April, the Final Destination 3 DVD will allow you to jumble the movie up and watch it in whatever order you wish, a new feature that must just freakin' thrill the MPEG to no end.

Lately, it seems Hollywood has a little thing for the prequel. Call it a crush. Call it an obsession. Call it annoying. Regardless, this new prequel trend does not appear to be leaving us anytime soon.

Mind you, not just any Tom, Dick and Larry (Is there a Jane in there too?) gets a prequel. There are certain prerequisite a film must obtain in order to qualify. First, the original (or multiple films that came before it) had to carry a certain level of "suckness" to require the kind of shake-up only a prequel can provide. In the case of an established franchise (ie: Friday the 13th, Nightmare on Elm Street), the prequel is to only come after every single idea in the book has been used and abused. Finally, if the original film did moderately well at the box office, had a ton of its main actors bail on a sequel and still has people itching for another installment, then a prequel might be the only route to take (ie: The Dukes of Hazzard).

Perhaps this sudden surge in prequels is good for Hollywood. Maybe it will help revitalize tired franchises and help provide a new spin to the stuff that's out there now. Or maybe the prequel is just a warning sign, one of those "Caution: Sinking Ship Ahead" kinds of signs. (Note: I've never witnessed such a "Sinking Ship" sign, but perhaps we should add one to most trailers?)

So, today's poll question comes in two parts: A) Is this whole prequel thing a good or bad thing for Hollywood and the future of the original idea? B) Which films do you feel could benefit from a prequel?