The Wayans brothers take on The Munsters
by Allison Waldman, posted Nov 13th 2008 8:01AM
You can't stop those Wayans brothers when it comes to doing anything for a laugh. Apparently, one of their long time dreams has been a big screen remake of a 1960's sitcom. They've been working on a script since 2004, but they are saying now that The Munsters movie is nearly ready to roll. I know, I know, how many times have we seen beloved TV series turned into horrible features? For every good one -- The Brady Bunch -- there's a lemon like Leave It to Beaver. The Wayans Brothers clearly believe that they have the goods to make The Munsters like the former rather than the latter.
However, I have to worry about how well they know the material when Shawn Wayans says, "Their characters are still who they were in the '50s. It's just in modern day." Umm, excuse me -- the '50s? The Munsters premiered in 1964 and ran till 1966; it was set in present day. Didn't the Wayanses notice that?
Okay, I'm being too picky. I'm sure it was just a slip of the tongue. If these guys say they loved the original, I'm inclined to believe them. Whether or not this is great material for a major motion picture, however, is arguable. They are committed to keeping true to the goofy premise and will not make the Munster family African-American (like The Honeymooners feature with Cedric the Entertainer and Mike Epps which was dreadful).
"They're gonna be green, white people just like they were in the TV show," said Shawn.
I'm hoping that The Wayanses study The Addams Family films that Barry Sonnenfeld put together. Both pics were excellent, honoring the original TV show and still being something brilliant on its own.

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