It’s just a jump to the left, but somehow the newly released rendition of “Time Warp” from Fox’s remake of the Rocky Horror Picture Show has taken the song from DIY freak carnival to Disney Channel nightmare. Brad, let’s go back, I’m cold and I’m frightened!
The new Rocky Horror, which premieres on October 21 on Fox, stars a mix of pop stars (Christina Millian), Broadway actors (Wicked’s Annaleigh Ashford), and former child stars (Ryan McCartan of Disney’s Liv and Maddie plays Brad, while Janet’s prim hells are being filled by Nickelodeon’s Victoria Justice). And, unfortunately, it shows. Reeve Carney (who you may know from Penny Dreadful or Taylor Swift’s “I Knew You Were Trouble” video) is our new Riff-Raff and, while vocally talented, he approaches “Time Warp” with none of the unpolished weirdness that makes the musical a cult classic.
Oh, well! The remake, I suspect, is less for existing Rocky Horror fans and more for a younger demographic that’s used to highly produced vocals. With any luck, the new version (which also stars Laverne Cox as Frank-N-Furter) will bring a new generation to the 1975 original film—ideally during a packed midnight showing on a Friday or Saturday night.