Although not as well known as some other ’80s sci-fi comedies like Back to the Future, the 1986 film Short Circuit has nevertheless remained a beloved cult classic for years. The movie centers around Number 5, a.k.a “Johnny 5,” an experimental military robot that is struck by lightning, and then begins to develop human like sentience. As you can imagine, wackiness ensues.
Now, according to a report coming from Deadline, it looks like Short Circuit is the latest ’80s film to go the reboot route. Only this time, it’ll have a Latinx update, thanks to screenwriters Eduardo Cisneros and Jason Shuman.
TriStar Pictures
The original film was as ’80s as one could get, as it starred The Breakfast Club’s Ally Sheedy, along with Police Academy’s Steve Guttenberg. John Badham directed the original film; he seems to have a thing for computers run amok, as he also directed War Games a few years before. 80s sci-fi was very obsessed with computers coming alive, although unlike the Terminator, Number 5 is lovable. Johnny 5 will probably get a visual upgrade, but we kind of hope he still looks like the customs droid in Star Tours.
It will be interesting to see how they update this one for the modern day. These days, modern audiences are way more tech savvy. Getting struck by lightning giving a robot sentience might be a tough pill to swallow in 2021. One thing we are pretty sure the new movie will do away with is problematic stuff. Like actor Fisher Stevens, a white guy, wearing dark makeup and contacts to play an Indian character. Yes, this is a thing that really happened folks. Not only is the character a painful stereotype, they didn’t even bother to get an Indian actor to play him. Eeek. Let’s do better this time, Short Circuit 2.0!
Featured Image: TriStar Pictures
