Abigail Breslin is set to have the time of her life as Baby in a DIRTY DANCING remake that ABC plans to air.
Adapted from the popular 1987 film in the hopes of capitalizing on the TV musical craze, this version of DIRTY DANCING is described as a three-hour event filled with song and dance numbers that’ll help tell the story of a 60s summer romance between the aforementioned Baby and cool dance instructor Johnny Castle – a role made famous by the late Patrick Swayze.
Unlike NBC’s THE WIZ and PETER PAN though, DIRTY DANCING will all be taped in advance, so it’ll have much more of a TV movie feel to it, but… Who is really itching for a different version of DIRTY DANCING than the one we already have?
The film holds up remarkably well, and, while it’s said that Lionsgate TV has their eyes on someone high-profile to take that male lead, can whoever really hold a candle to Swayze in the role?
This sounds like a project destined for failure given the inevitable comparisons to the original. If you watch through one commercial break and it doesn’t do it for you, you’re going to find something else that might entertain you. That’s an awfully high bar to try to meet and one I don’t know it can clear.