The remake that’s been in the works for years that I didn’t think would ever happen appears to be happening. Platinum Dunes and Mandalay Pictures’ version of The Birds has found its director in Dutch filmmaker Diederik Van Rooijen.

Van Rooijen has yet to make an English language project, though many of his films have been or are being adapted for American audiences. The Birds was originally a short story written by Daphne du Maurier but shares little in common with the Alfred Hitchcock classic, and Universal has said that the remake will be more in line with du Maurier’s short story instead of Hitchcock’s film. Having read the short story, I would be very surprised if that is, in fact, the direction the new film will be headed. The short story is a very solemn, isolated tale revolving around one family and taking place in a house in the middle of nowhere that comes under the attack of the birds.

Horror is having a resurgence at the box office with the likes of Insidious: Chapter 2, The Purge, and The Conjuring being big money makers and attracting A-list talent in 2013, so it’s no surprise this particular remake is back on track. While Academy Award nominated actress Naomi Watts had long been attached to the project, she is no longer slated to play the lead. The Hollywood Reporter notes that the most recent version of the screenplay has been drafted by Jonathan Herman.

What do you all think? Is it time Hitch’s classic be given the remake treatment? Are birds still scary all these years later? Sound off in the comments below!