10 US Remakes Of British TV Shows Which Were Actually Pretty Good
8. Utopia
A project a long time in the making, HBO first bagged the rights to Utopia in 2014, with the Gone Girl team of David Fincher and Gillian Flynn to direct and write the adaptation respectively. While the project could hardly be in safer hands, the very idea of a Utopia remake was enough to cause alarm bells to ring for some fans - this was one of the most distinctive and original shows in years. Did it really need to be remade?
Well, no, not really, but the remake Amazon ended up bringing us is actually pretty darn good. Flynn remained as the showrunner and sole credited writer, and while the directors involved aren’t quite at Fincher’s level, their rendition of the drama is as good as we could have hoped.
Utopia U.S. keeps the vibe of the original, while forging its own path with new characters played by John Cusack and Rainn Wilson, among others. If it lacks the visceral shock of the UK Utopia (which could be quite staggeringly violent), it makes up for it with an ambition and confidence seldom seen on TV.