Here comes another one...

It's like deja vu all over again.
It's like deja vu all over again.

Well, we've entered another season of summer blockbusters and with that comes another summer of sequels and remakes.

On Wednesday, the Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen opened amid much hype and anticipation garnering over $ 200 million in its first weekend.

This new Transformers film is another in a succession of summer blockbuster sequels and remakes including Night at the Museum 2: Battle for the Smithsonian, Terminator Salvation and Land of the Lost.

But sequels and remakes are not a new concept in Hollywood. Ideas have been used and reused for generations:

A Star is Born- This film, originally made in 1937 and starring Janet Gaynor as Vicki Lester and Fredric March as her love, Norman Maine., a young actress, trying to make it big. The film chronicles the rise of this bright young star to fame while the stardom of her love is fading. This film has been remade not once, but twice!

The 1954 remake starred Judy Garland as Vicki and James Mason as the washed up Norman Maine.

The film was then redone again in 1976 with Barbara Streisand and Kris Kristofferson and turn the leads into musicians instead of actors.

Did You Know?: In the 1954 version, the role of Norman Maine was rejected by Humphrey Bogart, Gary Cooper, Montgomery Clift, Marlon Brando, as well as accepted then turned down by Cary Grant because the character was a has-been actor.

Also, this was the first film where two people (Judy Garland and James Mason. 1954 version) in the same film were nominated for Oscars for playing the same roles for which two other people were also nominated (Janet Gaynor and Fredric March. 1937 version)


Probably one of the most successful sequels/trilogies of all time:
Star Wars (1977)- This intergalactic adventure is the first of a trilogy chronicling the fight of the Rebel Alliance against the evil Galactic Empire. Starring Mark Hamill as Luke Skywalker, Carrie Fisher as Princess Leia and Harrison Ford as Han Solo, this series has continued into the new millenium with prequels which chronicle the early years of Anakin Skywalker aka Darth Vader and the rise of the Empire to power.

The Empire Strikes Back followed in 1980 and the concluding episode Return of the Jedi followed in 1983

Did You Know?: Carrie Fisher actually has ties to our classic remake feature. Carrie's mother is Debbie Reynolds who owns a museum in Hollywood that features a large collection of Judy Garland's costumes.

Also, Return of the Jedi was the highest grossing film of 1983, more than $250 million.