The Name's Plissken!

So, it's announced a while ago that a remake of Escape from New York is going to be made with 300's Gerard Butler as Snake Pliskin. Well, now I've found this Q&A with Kurt Russell on EW.com. Basically, Kurt's not happy about it, which I would normally dismiss as an overly developed sense of entitlement, and that's exactly what a lot of his comments are. After all, everyone's movies are getting remade. Why should his roles be sacred? And is he actually getting pissy over the fact that The Thing is being remade? The version of The Thing he was in was a remake. So yeah, get over yourself Kurt Russell. But also, you're absolutely right Kurt Russell.

That doesn't make much sense. Does it? Let me explain.

I don't really think that actors have much of a right to complain about their movies being remade. I certainly don't think that a guy who stared in the remake of The Poseiden Adventure has a right to complain about it. I think it sucks that so many remakes are being made, but if Hollywood will let Gus Van Sant do a crappy remake of Psycho, then I hardly think the works of John Carpenter should be off limits. However, certain roles simply cannot be recreated. Do you really think that any other actor could fill the shoes of Harrison Ford as Han Solo or Indiana Jones? And I know I would have absolutely no interest in the Evil Dead remake if we had not already been assured that there will be no character named Ash. Now, Kurt Russell is no Bruce Campbell, but he's absolutely right in that he is Snake Plisken. I love Gerard Butler - he's sexy and cool and talented and totally reminds me of Sean Connery - but, as hot as he might look in an eye patch, I am not going to see that movie. I'll wait until someone casts him in a remake of Outland or Darby O'Gill and the Little People.

Although, if the movie turns out to be really awesome, like the Dawn of the Dead remake that I refused to see and then saw and it was awesome, I will completely reverse my opinion on this.

So, what characters do you think couldn't possibly be recreated by different actors?