Ice Cube is not ashamed to admit that when it comes to "Welcome Back, Kotter," the 1970s series that helped launch John Travolta's acting career, there "was no bigger fan than me." And Cube is thrilled about his latest role — as the lead in



Hollywood's big-screen adaptation of the sitcom classic.

According to Variety, Ice Cube has signed on to both star in and produce "Welcome Back, Kotter," and the rapper's "very excited to be able to put a new twist on it." The rapper/actor — who executive produces the FX reality series "Black. White." — has inked a deal with Dimension Films, the company that will be releasing "Kotter." Production is expected to begin this fall with Tom Brady ("The Hot Chick," "The Animal") in final negotiations to direct and write the script.

Cube will assume the role of a wisecracking teacher who returns to the rough inner-city high school from which he graduated. There he encounters the next generation of unruly, underprivileged troublemakers — who are as apathetic about education as he once was.

In the original series, Mr. Kotter was played by Gabe Kaplan. Travolta played Vinnie Barbarino, a scatterbrained himbo and the unofficial leader of a gang of students nicknamed the "Sweathogs."

Cube will be heading to Vancouver in June to start production on "Are We Done Yet?" the sequel to 2005's "Are We There Yet?" The film remakes the 1948 classic "Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House," a Cary Grant comedy about a family that leaves the big city for a fixer-upper in the suburbs only to watch their investment turn from a dream to a nightmare.

(Source: MTV.com)

Bad Idea jeans.

Likewise, also read that they're thinking about doing a big screen version of "Dallas" with John Travolta playing JR.

Ashton Kutcher. Who wants to place bets?

omg. i....i....just don't know what to think.


i LOVE 'welcome back kotter'.
but i've got a thing for ICE CUBE too.

Yeah, but who re-makes the John Sebastian tune?

i think its actually more insane that they are making a sequel to Are We There Yet.

It's for the kids, the only redeemable aspect of that film.

Also, Ice Cube is the new Steve Martin. I can't wait for the urban-remake of Parenthood (working title: parentHOOD).

Where is that "People who must be stopped" thread? Even watching Pulp Fiction re-runs, this guy just brings the suck.

Isn't he a little too young to have been such a Kotter fanatic? What's Happening, maybe. Dr. Dre I would believe.

Gabe Kaplan's not dead?

He would have been about 8 years old when Kotter came on.

Ice-T as Kotter. That'd be better. He'd beat Horshack ass.

I couldn't resist... from defamer.com

Who among us wasn't thrilled to hear that Ice Cube, the rap artist behind such hits as "Get Off My Dick and Tell Yo Bitch to Come Here," and "Fuck Dying" would be taking over the beloved title role in the movie adaptation of Welcome Back, Kotter. Gabe Kaplan, the original Kotter, told Access Hollywood Cube "is the perfect guy... He has shown what kind of crossover appeal he has." Even the original Horshack, Ron Palillo, was approached for comment; after jokingly suggesting he "should play Mr. Woodman," he then managed to put a swift, awkward end to all the nostalgic fun with this downer of a story:

He has officially retired his ultimate crowd-pleaser, the Horshack laugh — a gag that has haunted him for years.

"You know where that came from?" he says. "When I was 10 years old my dad died of lung cancer. And the last week he was alive the only way he was able to breathe was by making that noise.

Many thanks to Palillo, and his tale of the Horshack Cancer Death Rattle, which will likely drain a good portion of any joy we derive from watching the Sweathogs in the future. Let's hope John Travolta doesn't choose to share any similarly disturbing revelations on the origins of "up your nose with a rubber hose" that involve his gardening-enthusiast father's cruel and unorthodox disciplinary methods.

You know you could kinda see this coming on Death Certificate when Cube said:

You can't be the nigga 4 life crew, I am going to do a remake of a 70's sitcom where I play a white jew