‘Basic Instinct’ reboot in the works with original writer Joe Eszterhas

WASHINGTON: Paul Verhoeven’s directorial ‘Basic Instinct’ is being rebooted. The 1992 erotic crime thriller will receive an updated spin, to be written by the original screenwriter, Joe Eszterhas, reported People. The film will be released with Scott Stuber’s United Artists banner and Amazon MGM Studios.

Directed by Paul Verhoeven and starring Michael Douglas and Sharon Stone, ‘Basic Instinct’ follows crime novelist Catherine Tramell (Stone) as she becomes implicated in the death of retired rock star Johnny Boz (Bill Cable), while embarking on a complicated relationship with the detective on her case (Douglas), reported by People.

The film previously received a sequel in 2006 from a different writing and producing team, and the new film is intended to reboot the original. Stone could possibly return, as per the outlet.

Sharon Stone as Catherine Tramell in Basic Instinct 1992.
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‘Basic Instinct’ earned Academy Award nominations for its editing and original score at the time. In the 1990s, the film courted controversy for its depiction of an LGBTQ+ character as a dangerous killer at the tail end of the HIV/AIDS epidemic.

The criticism led to protests on the night Stone hosted Saturday Night Live to promote the movie, with protesters interrupting the actress’s opening monologue, resulting in six arrests in Studio 8H, as per the outlet.

“All these people are getting beat up and handcuffed right in front of me, and we went live”, Stone recalled of the incident in 2024, adding, “I was doing this live monologue while they were beating up and handcuffing people at my feet”, according to People. (ANI)