Little more than a week after the passing of fantasy artist Frank Frazetta, we have news of one of his most well-known creations coming back to the big screen in a new way. Director Robert Rodriguez has always been a big fan of Frazetta’s work (he even did a poster for From Dusk Till Dawn), and now this week he has announced that he obtained the rights to Fire and Ice, the 1983 animated film that was directed by Ralph Bakshi and co-created by Frazetta. Rodriguez is now planning a live action remake, and here is what he had to say about it:

“I’ve been inspired by his paintings since I was 10 years old back when I first saw those Bantam Books collections of his work at the local bookstore. I think that’s why I was continually drawn to Machete over the years, I always thought of Machete as my version of Frazetta’s CONAN. In fact, I have a bronze of Machete on my desk which you’ve seen where Machete’s standing in a classic Frazetta’s CONAN pose. I also have Frazetta reproduction paintings hanging all over my house, I don’t think I’ve gone a day without seeing Frank’s work somewhere in my living space. He’s been so influential to artists and filmmakers, and yet we still haven’t seen a Frazetta world truly come to life in a live action film, so that’s what I’d want to do with the FIRE and ICE project.”

It sounds like this is a good way to pick up and continue on with what he was originally going to do with the Red Sonja remake. I’m sure anyone who is a fan of ’80s sword and sorcery flicks should be able to get behind this. Are you excited about a Fire and Ice remake? In case you haven’t seen it, check out the trailer for the original film after the jump.