Slapstick Returns in ‘3 Stooges’ Revival

One of the most prolific comedic groups of the 20th Century is coming back to the silver screen for a new audience, and a new century. Henry Winterstern’s First Look Studios has picked up the rights to the The Three Stooges. The Stooges created their own unique brand of slapstick comedy which garnered world wide fame in the 1930’s through the 1960’s, even fostering conventions and several spin off films and cartoon series for Hannah-Barbera.

Bringing the unique styling of the brothers Howard and Larry Fine back to the screen has been no laughing matter. In 1959 the trio formed C3 Entertainment to oversee their endeavors and manage their enterprise. The estates of the group have overseen the rights to the material and concepts of the Stooges since their deaths. C3 has historically been critical of any attempt to re-create the work of the 3 Stooges. The company has previously allowed a biographical look at the Stooges in 2000; the once in development Farrelly brothers version would have been not a historical glimpse of the group, but rather a revamping of classic capers. That film was said to follow the concept put forth previously in The Little Rascals.

The project had originally been picked up by Columbia Pictures, the original home of the Stooges two-reelers. The production was then shifted to Warner Bros where the Farrelly bros. who were looking to make this into their next project, but the studio allowed their option to expire (they moved onto Heartbreak Kid remake). First Look picked up the option and plans to produce the film as a series of 4 shorts in the style of the original productions. C3 Entertainment has a syndication deal with Sony Pictures Television and global distribution of the shorts on television. Look for Moe Howard, Larry Fine and Jerome “Curly” Howard in the classic form sometime soon.