Anne Hathaway To Terrify A New Generation Of Children In 'The Witches' Remake

If you weren't traumatised by Anjelica Huston's portrayal of the Grand High Witch then are you even a 90s kid? Now actress Anne Hathaway has ascended to take over the role in the upcoming remake of The Witches, which is currently in pre-production.

Roald Dahl's classic children's book, The Witches, which was originally adapted into a terrifying but fun film with Anjelica Huston and animatronic mice in 1990, is set to get the cinematic treatment once again with Anne in the leading role.

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Anne Hathaway has signed up to star as the Grand High Witch in an adaptation helmed by Back To The Future filmmaker Robert Zemeckis, according to a report from Variety magazine.

It was previously reported that the Academy-Award winning actress was still in negotiations about scheduling. But it seems those timing kinks have now been ironed out.

Now schedules have been finalised, Anne will step into the same role Huston played so fabulously in the original, which was produced by Muppets creator Jim Henson.

Robert Zemeckis, who is perhaps best known as the director behind Forest Gump and Back To The Future, has been pegged to write the screenplay and he will also produce the film alongside Mexican film giants Guillermo del Toro and Alfonso Curon.

In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, the original Grand High Witch Anjelica admitted she "[didn't] really know why" an updated version was in the works, adding: "I think Nick Roeg made the ultimate Witches."

She added: "Frankly, best of luck to them. I hope it works. I just can't imagine anyone trying to remake that particular [film]. Maybe it's a good idea for this generation."

But not everyone was a fan of the original film, with Dahl famously calling it "utterly appalling".

While the 1990 version used artistic license to deviate from the original story, the director's remade version plans to be more faithful to Dahl's original 1973 children's novel.

The story is about a young orphaned boy who lives with his superstitious grandmother after the death of his parents.

While on holiday and staying in a hotel he happens upon a convention of witches who are masquerading as the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children and, after they turn him into a mouse (naturally), develops a plot to stop the child-killing villains.

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Amelia Jones

Amelia is a freelance journalist and editor specialising in beauty, health, fitness and lifestyle. She has previously worked for titles including Women's Health, Cosmopolitan, Stylist, Red and the Mail on Sunday.

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