“Guys and Dolls,” the venerable Broadway musical, is set to return to the big screen.
TriStar Pictures has purchased remake rights to the original Damon Runyon short stories about gamblers and gangsters that inspired the shows, as well as the rights to the Broadway musical with its book by Jo Swerling and Abe Burrows and its music by Frank Loesser. The studio has also acquired remake rights to the previous 1955 film adaptation from the Samuel Goldwyn company. That version of “Guys and Dolls” starred Marlon Brando, Jean Simmons, Frank Sinatra, and Vivian Blaine, and was directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz, who also wrote the screenplay.
Movie musicals have been robust box office performers in recent years. Hit adaptations of stage shows include “Hairspray,” “Chicago,” and “Les Miserables,” and original musicals such as “The Greatest Showman” and “La La Land” have also been successes. In the case of “Guys and Dolls,” the show boasts one of the greatest collection of showtunes. Its list of highly hummable numbers includes “If I Were a Bell, “Sit Down, You’re Rockin’ the Boat,” “Luck Be a Lady,” “Adelaide’s Lament,” and “A Bushel and a Peck.”
“Guys and Dolls” first premiered on Broadway in 1950, where it ran for three years and captured five Tony Awards, including the best musical prize. It has been oft-revived over the years, including an acclaimed 1992 version that helped make a stage star of Nathan Lane.
John Goldwyn (“I’m Not There”) and Marc Toberoff (“Bottle Shock”) are set to produce the new adaptation for TriStar, and Meyer Gottlieb (“Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World “) will executive produce. Hannah Minghella and Nicole Brown will oversee for TriStar.