Samuel L Jackson will star in Simon West's remake of 1958 sci-fi classic The Blob

A new version of The Blob starring Samuel L Jackson is to be produced in Belfast.

The original, the first film Steve McQueen ever starred in, appeared on screens everywhere in 1958 with the future celebrity playing a teenager (even though he was actually in his 20s at the time) trying to save his small town in Pennsylvania from an invader from space.

The Blob, which came in the form of a giant jelly-like lump, landed on earth from a distant planet and would menace townsfolk who stubbornly refused to spot the apparent danger and react in spite of warnings from McQueen's character, also named Steve.

The Paramount production was actually released in Northern Ireland as a double feature with a film called I Married a Monster from Outer Space.

I saw both films back when they were released in the Lyceum on the Antrim Road in Belfast.

Filming on the new Blob starts later this year and Samuel L Jackson will be appearing as a scientist.

Belfast Telegraph