I was watching the old Outer Limits shows from the second season (which had the largest number of their best shows IMHO), and had I, Robot on. Pepper Mill walked by and asked what I had on, so I told her. "They did “I, Robot”? she asked. I explained that it was not the Isaac Asimov story collection (whose title, but not substance, was used for that Will Smith movie). I explained that it was the title of an older story by “Eando Binder” (actually the brothers Earl and Otto Binder – “E and O”, get it?) that has come to be regarded as a classic. *
That got me to thinking about Asimov’s use of the title. Surely he knew of the earlier story, which was part of a series published from 1939-1942. Reportedly, the publisher came up with the title-- but I’m sure Asimov could have dissuaded them, if he felt it was necessary. Nevertheless, the book was published with that title.
I can think of two other cases where someone came out with a work bearing the title of a famous predecessor (and they’re also science fiction) and which are not remakes or reinterpretations – the anime Metropolis and the Michael Crichton novel The Lost World.
Are there other cases? I know of plenty of cases where a title has been recycled, for both movies and stories and novels, but I’m asking about cases where someone appropriates a famous title. It would be like someone publishing a new book entitled “The Grapes of Wrath”, or a movie called “Casablanca”.
*Earl and Otto were said to have written the screenplay for the Outer Limits episode, although iMDB credits Robert C. Dennis. Later, the later series of The Outer Limits redid the story in 1995, but with a new script.