It's hard to believe that they are moving forward with a remake of Fame. Well actually it's not that hard to believe, in this world of remakes and re-"everything else" it's not hard to imagine at all, especially with the fact that musicals are such hot property in Hollywood just now.

So hot news this morning is that there are nine sign ups for the Fame remake, and as you would expect none of them are big names. Yet.

Kristy Flores, Paul Iacono, Paul McGill, Naturi Naughton, Kay Panabaker, Kherington Payne, Collins Pennie, Walter Perez and Anna Maria Perez de Tagle have joined the musical with Thomas Dekker also is in negotiations. So those are the kids sorted out.

As an aside The Hollywood Reporter does confirm that there is one original cast member returning for a cameo, Debbie Allen. However they say that she won't be coming back to the same role.

However the teacher and parent roles are still waiting to be filled. Personally I would love to see some of the original cast appearing as parents sending their kids to the same school. That could provide for some interesting moments as they push kids towards the school against their will, try to force them not to make the same mistakes they did, or are fully supportive passing on all their experience. It could add a few extra twists, but I don't believe it's going to happen.

Here's the official breakdown of those roles:

Flores plays Rosie, a dancer; Iacano ("The Naked Brothers Band: The Movie") plays Neil, a filmmaker; McGill plays Kevin, a gay dancer; Naughton ("Notorious") plays Denise, a multitalented classical pianist; Panabaker ("CSI: Crime Scene Investigation") plays Jenny, an actor; Payne ("So You Think You Can Dance") plays Alice, a ballerina; Pennie ("Half Nelson") plays Malik, an artist; Perez ("Friday Night Lights") plays Victor, a musician; and Perez de Tagle ("Hannah Montana") plays Joy Moy. Dekker would play Marco, a singer.

Pearl also plays a singer. Bad joke.

Kevin Tancharoen is directing Fame from a script by Allison Burnett and Aline Brosh McKenna. Mary Parent, the MGM Chairman, said of the film:

"In many ways, the idea of pursuing a career in dance or music or acting is much more palpable now...Anyone with a page on a social networking site is instantly 'famous,' and anyone with a digital camera is a potential filmmaker. The negotiation between fame and real talent is much more immediate and something with which audiences are familiar, and there's a universal relatability to experiencing the trials and tribulations associated with pursuing one's dream, regardless of the arena."

Not sure whether that is really interesting or not, in fact I think I'm going with not. I don't really see this working, or perhaps as well as the Footloose film they're talking about as well.