Despite being released to theaters in 2003, Cabin Fever ended up getting a remake in 2016, and here's why Eli Roth signed off on the project. As a director and general pop culture figure, Roth has ended up somewhat divisive, in a manner akin to someone like Rob Zombie. Those who love Roth's work and Roth himself tend to be loyal supporters, while Roth's army of detractors is also quite vocal. Still, he continues to work all the time in various capacities, and seems to be doing fine overall.
Roth's directorial debut was Cabin Fever, a movie sporting a pretty ingenious premise: an extremely lethal version of flesh-eating virus escapes into the water supply and begins infecting people. The movie's signature scene is still probably Marcy (Cerina Vincent) shaving her own leg skin off in the bathtub, but there's lots of other memorable moments too. Whether one digs the film will also likely depend on whether they appreciate Roth's brand of lowbrow humor, which was immediately in full effect.
While horror movies getting remade is obviously not a recent invention, it's rare to see one get redone only 13 years after the original proved to be a hit. Even less common is a remake using the exact same script as the original. Yet that's exactly what happened with Cabin Fever, and here's why.
Why Eli Roth's Cabin Fever Was Remade So Quickly
While one might imagine some directors would be protective of their material, and not want it handled by someone else, Eli Roth explained why he didn't take that attitude about the Cabin Fever remake during a 2015 interview with IGN. According to Roth, the remake's director, Travis Zariwny, came to him in 2014 with a unique pitch. He wanted to take Roth's original script, and remake his debut feature. Roth was intrigued by the idea, especially since he had written Cabin Fever many years before it actually got made, and had been told it was terrible many times when being rejected. The thought that someone wanted to remake the same script was flattering, and Roth also wondered how the two versions would compare, such as when the same play is re-staged with new actors.
Roth ended up coming onboard as an executive producer, but had no actual involvement in the Cabin Fever remake's production beyond that, as he was busy with another project at the time. He did end up loving the final product though, and appreciated some of the small changes Zariwny had made, despite working from the same script, including changing up the death scenes. This ensured that while it was basically the same story, fans of the original couldn't necessarily predict everything that would happen. Interestingly, critics absolutely hated the new Cabin Fever, awarding it the dreaded 0% score, even though the original earned a 62% rating.