Amazon MGM Studios is developing a new version of Baby Boom, enlisting filmmaker Michael Showalter to direct and produce a contemporary take on the 1987 comedy that starred Diane Keaton as a high-powered executive whose life is upended by an unexpected baby. The project extends Showalter’s relationship with the studio through his Semi-Formal banner, which has a first-look deal for narrative features.
The original film, directed by Charles Shyer and co-written by Shyer and Nancy Meyers, followed Manhattan management consultant J.C. Wiatt as she tried to balance a demanding corporate career with sudden single parenthood after inheriting her cousin’s infant daughter. The movie earned two Golden Globe nominations, including best actress for Keaton, and later inspired a short-lived NBC series.
Showalter’s film is being described as a “modern reimagining,” though Amazon MGM has not yet announced a cast or screenwriter. He will produce alongside longtime collaborator Jordana Mollick for Semi-Formal and Stacey Sher for Shiny Penny, with Katie Aquino executive producing and Emily Crook overseeing for Semi-Formal. The remake remains in early development, with plot specifics being kept under wraps.
News of the reboot arrives roughly six weeks after Keaton’s death at 79 from pneumonia, a loss that has prompted a wave of reassessments of her work in both drama and comedy. In a widely shared tribute, Meyers wrote that she felt she and Keaton “really got” each other creatively, crediting the actor with elevating her scripts through a mix of vulnerability and sharply timed humor.
TheWrap first reported that the new Baby Boom will once again center on the clash between professional ambition and caregiving, but framed through the realities facing working parents today rather than the Wall Street-inflected culture of the late 1980s. Entertainment Weekly notes that the project joins a growing cluster of Keaton-related titles being revisited after her death, including a planned sequel to The Family Stone.
Beyond individual projects, the remake reflects Amazon MGM’s broader strategy of leaning on recognizable library titles while forging new theatrical and streaming pipelines, supported by a recent international distribution pact with Sony. For now, Baby Boom’s return is positioned as a way to introduce the story of J.C. Wiatt to a new audience while reconnecting older viewers with one of Keaton and Meyers’ signature collaborations.
