With the success of High School Musical 3: Senior Year its opening weekend, earning over $42 million, Paramount Pictures has announced it will fast-track it’s remake of Footloose in hope to acquire Zac Efron for its lead and HSM director, Kenny Ortega, on board as well.
Efron is currently in negotiations for the film, which will bring him a $5,000,000+ paycheck.
Neil Meron and Craig Zadan, who produced films such as Hairspray, in which Efron also co-stars, and The Bucket List, alongside Dylan Sellers (A Cinderella Story) are already confirmed as producing the film as well as Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist director Peter Sollett to pen the script.
Zadan also produced the original Footloose back in 1984.
The reboot of Footloose is trying to draw in older teens and young adults, versus the preteen and teen crowds of HSM, by writing new songs that will be a modern, fresh take on the original songs.
The original Footloose was one of the bestselling soundtracks of the 1980s and made actor Kevin Bacon a Hollywood heartthrob.
Footloose could star filming as early as Spring 2009 if the negotiation terms are met soon.