Lionsgate’s remake of the 1980s hit Dirty Dancing has found its scriptwriter in the person of Maria Maggenti. Maggenti reportedly beat out a number of other writers vying for the high profile assignment on the strength of her script Monte Carlo for Twentieth Century Fox. The writer has also penned an adaptation of Before I Fall and My Name Is Memory for Fox 2000 and New Regency
This remake is set to be directed by Kenny Ortega, who served as the dance choreographer on the original 1987 film.
Made for a paltry $6 million, the original film starred Jennifer Grey as a shy girl who falls in love with a dance instructor, Patrick Swayze, at a Catskills resort in the 1960s and grossed nearly $214 million. It spawned two hit soundtrack albums and even a concert tour featuring the Bill Medley and Jennifer Warnes who had a hit with the single “(I’ve Had) The Time Of My Life” from the film. A 2004 sequel, Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights, bombed horribly.
