Rick Famuyiwa to Direct 'Uptown Saturday Night' Remake Starring Kevin Hart

Source: Youtube

The Dope director is set to revive a blaxploitation classic.

An Uptown Saturday Night remake has been in a Hollywood holding pattern for almost two decades.

First announced all the way back in 2002 when Will Smith claimed to have acquired the rights, the film has gone from a Fresh Prince and Denzel-led production with Anchorman's Adam McKay in the director's chair to being stripped of any association with the aforementioned. But all is not lost for the '70s buddy comedy that once starred Sidney Poitier and a pre-disgraced Bill Cosby.

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According to The Hollywood Reporter, the remake is gaining steam again. This time, Dope and Brown Sugar director, Rick Famuyiwa, is locked-in at the helm with Kevin Hart set to star. Black-ish creator Kenya Barris will produce the film and has written the latest draft of the screenplay. Smith, instead of anchoring the film as its star, is still onboard as a producer through his Overbrook production company.

You can watch the trailer for the original Uptown Saturday Night below along with the theme song from the film's unreleased Van McCoy-penned soundtrack. Hold tight for updates in the months ahead.