He's 80. He hasn't written a produced screenplay since 2006. And yet Joe Eszterhas—Hollywood's one-time king of sleaze and scandal—is back, standing in the rain with a match and a can of gasoline, ready to reboot Basic Instinct. You can smell the smoke already.
The writer behind Showgirls, Jagged Edge, and yes, Basic Instinct is promising a version of his most infamous work that's more brutal, more bizarre, and very deliberately not in step with the times. He's calling it anti-woke. Amazon and MGM just called it a $4 million deal.
Let's talk about that.
🔪 Same Ice Pick, New Bloodbath
This reboot isn't some tasteful update. No arthouse nods. No nuanced reappraisal of Catherine Tramell's icy mystique. According to Eszterhas, this 2025-set film will feature serial killers, copycats, and what he calls “a demonic element.” That's right. Demonic. Like The Exorcist had a one-night stand with Seven and left the door open.
“The Catherine Tramell character I will write,” Eszterhas told The Wrap. “And I hope Sharon [Stone] agrees to do the picture… In my reboot, she is not the star of the picture but she is the main co-star.” Translation: Tramell's back, but she won't be crossing her legs in the center frame. She's haunting the margins now—possibly literally.
There's no director yet, but Verhoeven's name is already being thrown around in hopeful tones. He's 83. Stranger things have happened. (Jodorowsky's Dune almost did.)
🧨 The “Anti-Woke” Angle
Let's address the quote that ignited this particular fire:
“I don't believe in woke and I don't believe in being politically correct because I think it's not the truth, and I like the truth spoken.”
Whether you agree or not, you can't say he isn't clear.
To be fair, Eszterhas has always been a firebrand. Even in the ‘90s, his scripts had a reckless energy—equal parts genius and trainwreck. (Showgirls is still dissected in film schools, sometimes for the right reasons.) But this latest move feels less like rebellion and more like resurrection—with vengeance.
Is it brave? Or is it just nostalgic nihilism dressed up in a trench coat?
Hard to say. Eszterhas hasn't held a pen in this town since the mid-2000s, when his collaboration with Mel Gibson (The Maccabees) imploded over accusations of anti-Semitism and religious posturing. Since then, silence—until now. And now he's waking up in the middle of the night with dialogue ringing in his ears.
That part, I actually believe.
🩸 Blood, Sex, and Streaming Algorithms
Amazon's gamble is less about ideology and more about curiosity—and, let's face it, controversy. If there's one thing the original Basic Instinct proved, it's that sex and violence sell. And if there's one thing 2025's streaming economy demands, it's heat. Good or bad, this reboot will have it. Stone's potential return only adds fuel.
But here's the rub: this isn't 1992. You don't shock audiences anymore just by throwing a naked femme fatale in front of a camera. If you want to disturb, you need style. Precision. A point. And if Eszterhas really thinks the secret lies in just saying the unsayable, then we're in for a rough watch.
The trick won't be offending audiences. That's easy. The trick will be crafting something compelling amid the noise.
And I'm not holding my breath.
❓ So, Will It Work?
Maybe. Eszterhas has surprised us before. And there's something perversely refreshing about someone who doesn't chase trends or coddle critics. But “unfiltered” only works if there's clarity behind it. Otherwise, you're just a guy yelling at clouds—naked, holding a screenplay.
We'll know more soon. The script's due by early fall 2025. If all goes to plan, the cameras roll not long after.
Until then, file this one under “curious trainwrecks with potential.” Or, more bluntly: it's either going to be a glorious disaster—or the most talked-about revival since Twin Peaks.
But with demons.
