Movies & TV Shows Hollywood Should Make Next
- Kate
- Jun 10
- 15 min read
There are many time-periods and historical settings we haven't seen on the silver screen, like 18th century Morocco. There are quite a few books that need new adaptions, such as a remake of the poor 1970s version of the Peter Wimsey mysteries. Below I’ve compiled a list of ideas for movies, TV shows, and documentaries that Hollywood should make next.
Movies Hollywood Should Make Next
Gentlemen of The Road
based on the 2007 book by Michael Chabon
It’s really rare to find medieval Khazar books, much less movies or tv! This is a great buddy-cop sort of movie, with an unlikely pairing of 2 sell swords, only this time in medieval Khazar.
This would likely be successful with the same people who like FX's Shogun for it's political history and sword fighting. And just like Shogun, I found the source material very long and dry.
Spinning Silver
based on the 2018 book by Naomi Novik
Retelling of the Rumpelstiltskin story with a Jewish main character. I didn't love the book, but I think it's an incredibly imaginative retelling. Also, it's popular with a known fan base, for instance this book was nominated for Goodreads Favorite Fantasy Award.
Ben Bova's Mars
based on the 1992 book
About the first humans on Mars. I wonder if the time has passed for this book because we've had The Martian and instead Bova's moon series would be more likely to be greenlit by Hollywood. However, I think this is the best of all of his space books.
Cascadia 2030
based on "The Really Big One" by Kathyrn Schulz about the possible earthquake that will hit Seattle and Portland and will likely be 9.0 and expect to kill 13,000 and displace 3 million people
I think we need a movie to scare people. That article wasn't enough to scare people - we need The China Syndrome to Three-Mile Meltdown.
Owen Wingrave
based on the 1892 short story from Henry James
This is a great horror short story with a commentary on pacifism. I'm not sure if it's enough for a full movie.
Carousel
I would love to see a modern remake of Carousel that is different from the original Rodger & Hammerstein book, adding a lot more dialogue. We can keep the original ending, but I think updating it for a modern world and making some of the dialogue more explicit will make this musical more approachable for some audiences.
Journey of the Three Wise Men
I would love to see a more racially and historically accurate movie about the Three Wise Men. There are a lot of Nativity movies, we get at least one every other year, but I'd like to see something more in the vein of a historical epic like The Robe as opposed to the Sunday school productions we've been getting.
Part of me would also like "The Star" by Arthur C. Clarke to be fully adapted.
Horror in Poveglia
I'm surprised we don't have a horror movie of a bunch of college students on vacation in Venice stumbling upon the black plague burial grounds.
Besides Poveglia there is The Lazzaretto Vecchio, both are islands that contains mass burial sites of people who died from the plague.
Horror in Interlaken
Interlaken is a really popular destination but it's also in an area with caves that supposedly St. George visited which are near the waterfall Sherlock Holmes supposedly died at. That entire area is very pretty, which would be a great backdrop to a horror movie.
Lunar New Year Love Story
2026 LNY is 3 days from Valentine’s Day. Hallmark likes to do double holiday movies with Christmas and other religions (like Kwanzaa and Hannukah) so this is up their alley to do a double holiday movie, and it and offers more Asian-American representation to their catalog.
Hallmark could adapt Gene Luen Yang's story but age up the characters.
Where the Rhythm Takes You
To add to Hallmark's Pride & Prejudice and Sense & Sensibility inspired movies, Hallmark could adapt Sarah Dass's novel, which is a modern adaption of Persuasion set on the island of Tobago.
Hallmark has a habit of bad green-screen (see Dater's Handbook and Romance in the Air) so I would want this to be filmed on location in Tobago like their other foreign-travel movies. Hallmark has filmed in Belize successfully with Caribbean Summer so Tobago is probably okay, but maybe this needs a different studio to give it it's proper worth.
Music on the Range
There's a whole sub-genre of romance movies focused on music. I would love to see a remake of Rhythm on the Range / Pardners.
It's already got a Hallmark-esque plot of a woman who runs away at the altar to follow some singing cowboys who are leaving NYC and finds joy in the American west. To update this for a modern audience, I think a Bollywood-Country adaption would be cool.
Thanksgiving at Coral Cove
To add to Hallmark's Thanksgiving and Fall line-up, they could adapt Jax Wilder's novel, Harvesting Love. It's got all of Hallmark's favorites of a small-town, a newcomer trying to overcome their grief, fall vibes in a bookstore, and a ghost (plus queer representation!).
By changing the title, if it's a hit then Hallmark could build off into following other queer people in the town for a found-family vibe around the Coral Cove bookstore, like Valentine's at Coral Cove.
Hasta la Muerte
Hallmark channel needs way more fall movies. I would love to see a Dia de los Muertos or All Saint's Day holiday-themed movie to go with their Christmas, Easter, and Valentine's Day movies. They could pull of their favorite plot-line, Cinderella, and fish-out-of-water since the holiday involves costumes and traditions really vary between families and regions.
The Skuddag Proposal
I really hate Leap Year (2010) because it sets-up a cool ending. Amy Adams is a professional stager to help people sell their homes and the Matthew Goode is struggling to sell his bar, BUT THEY NEVER DO ANYTHING WITH THIS. Also the facial hair they give Matthew Goode and the green screen castle are crimes against Ireland.
Ireland and Scotland have romantic traditions around Leap Day, but so does Denmark! So I think a remake of Leap Year where the whole stager to interior designer and helping the love interest get out debt can finally be fulfilled. But, by setting it in Denmark, it still justifies itself as a remake as fans of the original can now enjoy beautiful road trip through the Danish countryside.
Plot is woman hasn't gotten a ring from her long-term boyfriend, he's in a country with Leap Day proposal traditions, flies to that country but shenanigans ensue making her realize that actually they should break up and instead falls in love with a man she met during shenanigans.
Issue: this movie does involve emotional cheating so maybe the man breaks up with her, and main character has to learn to let go.
Some Bunny to Love
Hallmark only has 2 Easter movies so to add another one, they could adapt this book by Allie Logan that involves a fake dating plot. Mainly chose it because of the pun title.
First Kiss Fireworks
To add to Hallmark's other 2 Fourth of July movies, they could adapt Kristen Ethridge's novel, but with some changes to avoid discussion of concussions.
Dr. Mandy McGovern was headed to Europe for a research-filled summer sabbatical that would secure her promotion to a tenured professor...until a funding shortage at her beach town college closes her project, so she turns to doing some research at the campus clinic. Turns out the baseball coach she has a rivalry with at school has an estranged son with an orthopedic injury. Can she help repair the son-father relationship without injuring her own heart?
TV Shows Hollywood Should Make Next
The Double Queen
Starz has had a massive success with their series such as The White Queen and The Spanish Princess, I would love them to try their hand at Eleanor of Aquitaine.
Could use Captive Queen book by Alison Weir as a basis, but there's a lot of myth around Eleanor so Starz needs to hire quite a few historians to help.
The New Mexico Saga
Below I mention some documentaries I'd like to see made, but here, I want an epic miniseries that goes through the history of New Mexico's statehood. It would be expensive and I don't think anyone would watch it.
Some highlights include the Teapot Scandal involving a mistress shooting Jon Hamon, Ned Doheny's gay history, and Fall as the main architect of the scandal way over his head. He owned Three River Ranch which he got through Oliver Lee, who Fall defended over the murder of Albert Fountain and his son. Lee had been accused by Pat Garret, who murdered Billy the Kid, who was accused of selling rustled cattle to the previous owner of 3 Rivers Ranch. That court case involved corruption of the utmost at the New Mexico level. Alber Fountai led the charge against Cochise & Geronimo in the battle that resulted in the establishment of Ft. Bowie. Fall didn’t like the Forest Service (at that time under the Ag dept) because they were pro conservation. Specifcially, Fall wanted Mescalero to be privatized so he could make money off of it. Fall also at one time owned the main newspaper in Alburquere.
Lew Wallace was the territorial governor who at the last minute backed out of his deal to pardon Billy, formed the Greek style militia for the Civil War, and wrote Ben-Hur.
Brennan
I love the Bones series, based on a fictional anthropologist and forensic scientist who sovles crimes with the FBI in Washington DC based on real science. There's been talk of a revival, but I think the better thing would be to create a movie about her daughter as a scientist in the Pacific Northwest solving crimes with the FBI. It can multiple cameos from Bones characters and feature plot-lines from Kathy Reich's other series (Virals).
Inspiration is the real-life forensic scientists at Clark R. Bavin National Fish and Wildlife Forensics Laboratory in Ashland, Oregon. It would be similar to Bones as a FBI procedural with a forensic scientist, but instead of focused mostly on human bones and Temperance's humanity, it focuses on nature and animals.
While the original Bones was a product of its time in a post-9/11, Bush world with a heavy influence of "any Ordinary Cop, Alone Against The Forces Of Evil” trope and some older opinions on torture, this new show could be a product of today encapsulating a lot of millennial and Gen Z feelings about climate change and subverting "copganda."
Nancy Drew in Lagos
I don't think we've had a good television show adaption of the Nancy Drew books that captured the feeling of independence in a large, sunny coastal city. The 2019 series was set in a small fishing village in Maine, the 2002 was set in a small community college town in the Midwest, the 1995 series was set in New York City, and the 1977 series was set in a small town in New Jersey. None of that captures my childhood image of Nancy driving her blue t-bird down a sunny coastal highway. She's not a NYC girl. She's not a New Englander. She's from the Midwest and gets moved to a huge, sunny coastal city. That same arc can be achieved with an American-Nigerian girl moving from Cincinnati to Lagos. I want Nancy to be out of her depth in a city with a sunny beach and skyscrapers.
I acknowledge we achieved the Midwest girl to sunny coastal city with her classic car in the 2007 movie, but I remember as a kid really resenting how easy the mystery was and how much of a "pick me" girl was her character in the writer's attempts to make Nancy straddle the modern setting and 1960s aesthetic. The great thing about a modern setting of an American-Nigerian woman moving back to Nigeria is we get fish-out-of-water but also can do the original classic mysteries. Nigeria has Nollywood and a lot of the plots from the original books could still be adapted in that setting while feeling fresh. With this adaption, we get a new setting from the original books so it feels new and fun, while still be true to the stories.
Adventures from the Book of Stories
I know Adventures from the Book of Virtue is a Regan administration show, but I think it did a great job in introducing children (like me!) to many folk tales and fables. I'd love to see it revived with more global stories and better animation for the classics. We could also include classic stories like Guy de Maupassant's The Necklace.
In general, we need more adaptions of American folktales. I'd love to see a Paul Bunyan adaption that doesn't white-wash his story. Maybe his girlfriend or best friend is Ojibwe and he has to confront the destruction of his way of logging. Since these are fantastical stories of cutting the Grand Canyon and such, I think it fit best in animation. In the original AFTBOV, Annie is Native American and Zach is white and they have animals friends like a scholarly bison named Plato, so the different elements of the story could be explored in a way the both highlights the original tall tales and remakes it in a new way.
Point of Hopes
based on the 1995 book series by Melissa Scott
Elevator Pitch: Gay detectives in medieval fantasy setting with a religious-political system based on astrology.
The book series is incredibly slow moving and chaste (the gay couple doesn't hug once on page in the entire series). I would obviously change this and want it to be PG-13. This is for the Game of Thrones and Six of Crows fans who are also into police procedurals. For the astrology gays and romantasy girlies, if you will.
London Kraken
based on the 2010 novel by China Miéville
I'm shocked this hasn't been adapted yet, it's the exact flavor as Dirk Gently's Holistic Dective Agency and Miss Davis: an urban fantasy comedy with absurdist humor, and the BBC has already adapted Miéville other main book, The City and the City. Perfect for similar miniseries.
The plot is about a giant squid that has disappeared from the London Natural History Museum the same time as mysterious murders, and a museum staffer falls into absurdist situations involving the Met, different squid cults, and supernatural elements.
Stranger in a Strange Land
based on the 1961 book by Robert A. Heinlein
Another book I'm shocked hasn't gotten an adaption because other works by this author have been adapted to success. Just like Starship Troopers, I think any adaption should play fast-and-loose with the book as a source. There's a lot of interesting questions raised in Heinlein's book, like someone starting their own cult, and we can forgot about the general sexism.
The plot is about the first human being raised on Mars, newly returned to Earth. Among his people for the first time (as he was raised by aliens but we could possible change this to robots), he struggles to understand the social mores and prejudices of human nature that are so alien to him, while teaching them his own fundamental beliefs via a cult of personality.
Holmes on the Range
based on the Arthur Conan Doyle books and 2006 series by Steve Hockensmith
Sherlock Holmes being sent to Montana on a ranch is just hilarious as a pun and concept.
Space Marque
based on the 2003 Vatta's War series by Elizabeth Moon
Female military science fiction based on merchant wars like the Letter of Marque time in the 19th century. This is The Expanse meets Starship Troopers.
I thought the books left a lot to be desired on writing style, but the world is amazing.
Tripoli Wars
based on Thomas Jefferson and the Tripoli Pirates: The Forgotten War that Changed American History by Brian Kilmeade as well as the real history
This is Horatio Hornblower meets USA revolutionary history meets the 18th century Northern Africa. Would be expensive as anything with sailing ships is expensive.
Spin the Dawn
based on the 2022 duology by Elizabeth Lim
I thought the books were really disjointed and needed more room to breathe, which is the reason why I think they'd make a great animated series. The Chinese mythology and folk element of sewing with starlight could be beautiful in animation.
Detective Chan
Charlie Chan is a fictional Honolulu police detective created by author Earl Derr Biggers for a series of mystery novels published between 1925 and 1935. His characterization has been a beacon of poor Asian-American representation in American film so it would be hard to get enough people on board with a prequel series.
I'd like to see HBO's Perry Mason prequel - grittier than the original and leans into the history.
The great thing about a prequel series is we can really explore the racism present in 1930s Hawaii, see him fall in love with his wife, and see the build-up to Pearl Harbor. I imagine the last season to start with just a 2 hour horrific form of Pearl Harbor like it's HBO's Chernobyl.
Falco Mysteries
based on the 1989 book series by Lindsey Davis (first book is The Silver Pigs) about the detective Marcus Didius Falco.
It's been a long time since we've had a procedural style show set in Rome (normally they're historical epics or political dramas) and these books are the best of the best.
Berlin Noir
based on the 1989 book series by Philip Kerr (first book is March Violets) about the detective Bernie Gunther.
This is a fascinating noir detective series that coincides with the rise and fall of Nazi Germany. Based on the success of shows like Babylon Berlin, people would really enjoy this.
Lord Wimsey Mysteries
I'm shocked we don't have a modern adaption of this classic series amongst all the other British mystery series. The 1970s tv show does not hold up, the sound and filmography looks ancient to the modern eye.
Based on the 1923 books series by Dorothy L. Sayers (first book is Whose Body? with the introduction of Harriet in Strong Poison). I'd suggest adapting the books out of order but lean into the pre-war atmosphere as we know where it's all headed.
Plot is a British lord who helps solves crimes, but generally hides his intelligence behinds a happy-go-lucky facade.
An idea for new plots include a tarot card reader pretending to get an inheritance (like The Death of Mrs. Westaway).
The Victorian Nine
For all the Queen Victoria adaptions, we don't have a good adaption about her children.
The Second Mist
Out all of Brandon Sanderson's books, the Wax & Wayne series is the one I'd like to see on screen first. It really reminds me of Going Postal and Firefly, where there's Steampunk vibes but also gods and comedy with a Butch Cassidy & Sundance kid vibe.
Season 1: Wax and Wayne have monsters of the week and he and Lessie fall in love. We see Wayne rib Wax about his faith to Harmony and easter eggs that Lessie is connected to harmony in a way we don't understand.
Season 2: W&W have to confront that back home they've left things go to ruin.
Season 3: most of the actual book plot of Alloy of Law
Adapt further books if first 3 seasons are successful. By starting before the first book starts, showrunners have more to play around with without pissing off fans and can introduce the audience into the world mechanics more slowly than the book does. I'm still really torn about Lessie's arc in the books. Starting the show before the book starts it's a slower introduction to the world mechanics and Lessie's arc will feel less stereotypical.
Documentaries Hollywood Should Make Next
Trailblazing Doctors
In the same way the Smithsonian has made a series on "The Million-Dollar American Princesses" detailing different Americans who married royalty, I would like to see that same caliber of documentary work for trailblazing doctors such as the Blackwell Sisters.
Bramwell tv series was okay, the ending was odd, and Call the Midwife is extremely successful so instead of documentary, a historical fiction series about the Blackwell sisters could also work. However, I'd prefer an in-depth documentary series since it gets depressing and this way we could jump time-period like the Smithsonian's documentary series.
The White Pacific
Based on the 2007 book, The White Pacific: U.S. Imperialism and Black Slavery in the South Seas after the Civil War, by Gerald Horne
Similar to Ken Burns Civil War series, I'd like to see a documentary series on U.S. Imperialism in the South Pacific, focused on post and pre Civil War.
Life and Songs of Pearl Bailey
Queen Latifah could probably pull off a Pearl Bailey biopic, but I would also love a documentary series where each episode includes long segments where we just listen and watch the real Pearl Bailey.
Her personal life is interesting as her 5th husband, Louis Bellson, was white and they reportedly fell in love while sharing a cab. Both of their families were rumored to be against it, but they were married until their deaths (almost 40 years!). In addition to overcoming racism and musical excellence, it's a real story of true love.
History of Fashion at Cannes
I attempted a blog post on the common question of "when did fashion become a thing at the Cannes film festival" but I just don't have the breadth of knowledge or access to all the photographs. Since photography reproduction is so expensive and complicated, I think a documentary series would be a better fit that a coffee book, especially because then we could get new reel and film clips as well.
The articles with photos just don't do the justice in the way I think film could, but I could possibly be persuaded by a good photo book. Especially because so many of those articles don't go all the way back to stars like Catherine Deneuve and Vanessa Redgrave from the 1960s or ignore the history of non-European stars, like Deepika Padukone and Fan Bingbing.
There's so much to cover, from Elizabeth Taylor's tan, to Princess Diana's attendance, to how Cannes affects the film industry, this would need to be a mini-series to cover the politics, economics, and history in addition to show the fashion. Cannes can be a lens to discuss the rise and fall of the studio system, how paparazzi has changed from the 60s to today as technology and social norms changed, to the importance of the red carpet to sell clothes now that most fashion houses are publically traded.
My one warning about this adaption is not repeat the pitfalls of the 2011 and 2012 documentaries on the Battle of Versailles Fashion Show - too many talking heads, hardly no fashion or music.
Melania Trump's Fashion
Similar to the above about Cannes, a documentary series on Melania Trump's fashion could easily be a coffee book. However, I think a video would be really interesting to see the fashion in movement and videos. Also, one could likely have way more content in a mini-series.
From Melania wearing a pith helmet to tour Africa (a colonial symbol), to wearing a "I don't card do you?" jacket from known anti-IVF, anti-Asian designers to visit children jailed at the border, to trying to mimic Jackie O's famous look while her step-daughter copies the Princess of Wales, there's a lot of content to cover.
The Women Fashion
Oh look, a third fashion documentary! The Women was a smash hit comedy in the 1939 and then was remade in the 2008. The fashion in both films are very of their time and the costume history is both. I'd love a proper behind-the-scenes documentary about the first film as well as some costume comparison with the remake. Just like the Melania idea, I thought maybe I could write a blog post with some light internet searching, but really this is something experts should step in about.
What's a book or idea that you'd like to see made into a movie or tv show?
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