Russell Brand isn't everybody's cup of tea. Could that be a factor here?

I certainly have zero interest in seeing Russell Brand in an Arthur remake; even less interest than I had in seeing Dudley Moore in the original.

It all depends on the film, who writes/directs it and who did the original... Case in point, I was extremely excited when Platinum Dunes announces Texas Chainsaw remake back in 03, I believe. Fast forward only seven years and I wanted to cut the eyes out of my head when I saw the Nightmare on Elm remake. It's weird because both scripts added new ideas and fresh takes, but the real problem lies in the fact that Freddy is an icon, with a voice and a personality and Leatherface, not so much. I think it really comes down to what is being rebooted, and why.

I'm sorry....Arthur "targeted an upscale adult audience"? Maybe i saw the wrong promotional material.

Just saw "Arthur" and thought it was very good. Even better than the original. The trailers don't do it justice.

I'm tempted to dismiss any remake but then I remember that "His Girl Friday," perhaps the greatest comedy ever made, was a remake of "The Front Page." And John Huston's "The Maltese Falcon" had already been made twice in the previous decade. I think the important element is inspiration. In "His Girl Friday," changing the character of Hildy Johnson from a man to a woman and making it a romantic comedy was an inspired idea, and yet the film was still true to the original play. Unfortunately it seems that what's behind a lot of remakes is a lack of imagination.

@Frank: "Unfortunately it seems that what's behind a lot of remakes is a lack of imagination." Yes and yes.

Honestly I'd much rather they take movies that had great concepts but weren't all that great in their execution. Remake those, not classics.

Isn't this a symtom of Hollywoods predeliction for 'High Concept'?
In other words they believe that if a film was a hit, it must have been the concept, the logline that was the reason.(This after all, for many of them, is all they look at when judging a films potential) Heaven forbid it should be about actors, directors & writers.
The talent - in other words.
It ain't what you do it's the way that you do it ...that's what gets results.

It's part of the same phenomena that has gripped the industry for six or seven years now - the quest for identifiable "pre-branded" material that has a built in audience. From looking at the terrible WOM for most Hollywood movies these days to the BO of the last few super hero movies as well as remakes and clunkers like Marmaduke and Yogi Bear, I think this trend is fork-ready. Done, done, done. It'll just take a little bit for the studio machinery to catch up with what they must know to be true and clear out the pipes.

In the case of Arthur, maybe they were looking for pre-branded but got stuck with pre-Russell-Branded, instead.

Speaking of Brand, this just popped up on The Wrap:

It's official. Russell Brand is joining a cavalcade of Hollywood stars in the big screen adaptation of "Rock of Ages."

Brand will play Lonny, the show's narrator and a rock club operator.

"I can officially announce Russell Brand as your Lonny in #rockofagesmovie ! I see a mullet in his future...maybe a Nikki Six?," the film's director Adam Shankman tweeted....

With his tight fitting wardrobe, penchant for leather trousers and mane of hair, Brand often skirts the line between comedian and rock star. No surprise than that he's played out-of-control musicians in "Get Him to the Greek" and "Forgetting Sarah Marshall."

When he's strayed from his rock god image, as in "Arthur," the result hasn't been pretty. Welcome back to the arena, Mr. Brand.