This remake business was bad, but now it's officially going crazy. Now they're remaking a film before the original has even been released.

[Rec] is a Spanish horror film that has already been adapted, the script has already been written and the original hasn't been seen. Just how much further can this remake malarky go?

The story is that Quarantined has just gained three cast members, Jay Hernandez from Hostel (Filmstalker review), Columbus Short from Stomp the Yard and Jennifer Carpenter, from The Exorcism of Emily Rose (Filmstalker review) and Dexter, and was excellent in both.

The remake story is about a rabies outbreak in an L.A. building. Well that doesn't sound too bad, a lot of pain and some death, and perhaps some long needle shots into the stomach. Surely it can't be about rabies though, it must be some virulent new strain that makes people into evil, undead chomping creatures, not just rabies.

The blurb for the original [Rec] says:

"While covering the night shift at a small-town fire department, an ambitious young television reporter (Manuela Velasco) and her cameraman follow the crew on a call to rescue an elderly woman unable to escape the inferno that is consuming her home. Upon their arrival at the scene, the calm midnight air is pierced by the sound of horrific screams, and the television report takes an unexpectedly dark turn."

It was written by Jaume Balagueró, Luiso Berdejo and Paco Plaza and Balagueró and Plaza directed the film.

Word comes from Cinematical through Jo Blo that the remake is happening and that John Erick Dowdle is writing and directing with his brother Drew Dowdle co-writing. I wonder what's next? Rewriting someone else's script before it's even been approved? Oh I'm sure that's happening already and we don't know about it!