Alex Garland says another possible adaptation of The Beach is in the works

Last Updated on August 2, 2021

Do you remember Danny Boyle's THE BEACH? The 2000 drama which starred Leonardo DiCaprio as a young American tourist who comes across a mysterious island in the Gulf of Thailand where a small community of people live an idyllic existence. Also, there's a huge marijuana farm protected by armed guards and Tilda Swinton being Tilda Swinton-y. The book on which THE BEACH was based was written by Alex Garland, who would later shift into the world of film by penning 28 DAYS LATER, SUNSHINE, NEVER LET ME GO, and DREDD, as well as writing and directing both EX MACHINA and ANNILHILATION.

While taking part in a Reddit AMA to promote the release of ANNILHILATION, Alex Garland was asked whether or not another adaptation of "The Beach" was a possibility, and surprisingly, Garland revealed that one is currently in the process of being developed.

Well, someone very talented is currently working on a possible adaptation, so I'm really interested to see what they write.

There's no word on just who is working on the adaptation and there's obviously no guarantee that the project will move beyond the script stage, but it would be intriguing to see this story through new eyes. Although the Danny Boyle film was financially successful, no doubt helped by the post-TITANIC Leonardo DiCaprio hysteria, critics didn't exactly embrace it, so perhaps a remake would be able to succeed where the first one failed.

The synopsis of Alex Garland's "The Beach" via Amazon:

The Khao San Road, Bangkok — first stop for the hordes of rootless young Westerners traveling in Southeast Asia. On Richard's first night there, in a low-budget guest house, a fellow traveler slashes his wrists, bequeathing to Richard a meticulously drawn map to "the Beach."

The Beach, as Richard has come to learn, is the subject of a legend among young travelers in Asia: a lagoon hidden from the sea, with white sand and coral gardens, freshwater falls surrounded by jungle, plants untouched for a thousand years. There, it is rumored, a carefully selected international few have settled in a communal Eden.

Haunted by the figure of Mr. Duck — the name by which the Thai police have identified the dead man — and his own obsession with Vietnam movies, Richard sets off with a young French couple to an island hidden away in an archipelago forbidden to tourists. They discover the Beach, and it is as beautiful and idyllic as it is reputed to be. Yet over time it becomes clear that Beach culture, as Richard calls it, has troubling, even deadly, undercurrents.

ANNIHILATION is now playing in theaters, so be sure to check out a review from our own Chris Bumbray!