Is a remake of time travel movie The Final Countdown going to happen? Time travel movies have come in all shapes and forms, from the family-friendly adventures of the Back To The Future trilogy, the dark sci-fi action of The Terminator or the murky morality of Rian Johnson's thriller Looper. More recently, Avengers: Endgame saw the title team literally revisit some of their greatest moments to undo Thanos' snap from the previous movie.
One of the lesser sung gems of the genre is 1980's The Final Countdown. This sees the crew of the USS Nimitz somehow travel back in time to 1941, a day before the infamous attack on Pearl Harbor. They then have to decide if they will either warn of the attack or intervene directly, which risks altering the course of history in unpredictable ways. The movie had a great cast, including Kirk Douglas (Spartacus), Katherine Ross and Martin Sheen, and was co-produced by Troma founder Lloyd Kaufman. The movie did modest business during its initial release, and while it's an enjoyable ride, it's held back by some weak visual effects and an anti-climatic ending.
The Final Countdown feels like a great concept that wasn't fully fleshed out during the first attempt, but is there any chance of it being remade?
A Final Countdown Remake Was Touted In 2010
The Final Countdown was also produced by Peter Douglas - son of Kirk - who later went on to produce movies like cult Disney favorite Something Wicked This Way Comes. In 2010 Deadline reported Douglas' production company Vincent Pictures had optioned the rights to several classic films from director John Frankenheimer, including Seconds and Seven Days In May.
Peter Douglas' company also secured the rights to some of his father's work, including 1958's The Vikings and The Final Countdown.
The Final Countdown Remake Isn't Happening
Outside of a credit on Drew Barrymore's directorial debut Whip It!, no further films were produced by Vincent Pictures in the years that followed. There were no further updates on remakes like Seconds or The Final Countdown following the 2010 announcement either, with no cast or filmmakers being attached.
The Final Countdown remains a cult item but despite a great hook, it lacks name recognition with most modern viewers, which would likely turn off investors. The concept itself would need a hefty budget to pull off too, so while there's always a chance it could move forward, it's currently looking doubtful this remake will happen.