David Siegel and Scott McGehee pose during the 2012 Doha Tribeca Film Festival on November 23, 2012.
Andrew H. Walker/Getty
On Wednesday night it was announced that a movie adaptation of Lord Of The Flies is in production. The twist, however, is that the stranded islanders will all be young women.
According to Deadline, the male film-making team of Scott McGehee and David Siegel (pictured above) signed a deal with Warner Brothers for a remake of the William Golding’s 1954 novel. The book, which follows a group of young men and their ill-fated attempt to set up a civilization on a deserted island, was made into a movie in 1963 by Peter Brook.
McGehee said he and Siegel were “taking the opportunity to tell it in a way it hasn’t been told before, with girls rather than boys, [which] shifts things in a way that might help people see the story anew.” The gender-flipped film follows similar remakes for films including Ghostbusters and the upcoming Ocean's 8.
However, Lord Of The Flies' plot is not as easily switched along gender lines. Writer and commentator Roxane Gay was among the first to point this out.
An all women remake of Lord of the Flies makes no sense because... the plot of that book wouldn't happen with all women.
— roxane gay (@rgay) August 31, 2017
Her comments were echoed across social media while others pointed out the potential issues with having two men write a film about a group of young women. Read on for a selection of the reactions now.