This might be one of those rare cases where “sometimes, dead is better.”
There is perhaps no martial arts movie released in the modern era that has received more praise than The Raid: Redemption.
Released in 2011, The Raid is 101 glorious minutes of blood-soaked, balls-to-the-wall violence so beautiful choreographed that it should’ve won a Tony award above all else. The same can be said for its 2014 sequel, Berandal, which has been dubbed as “The Godfather of martial arts films” by those who have seen it. (If you don’t believe them, just check out the fight scene above and tell me that they’re wrong.)
But there is one problem with The Raid: It’s Indonesian! Yes, despite having approximately 20 lines of dialogue in the entire movie, the idea of giving a foreign movie with subtitles the wide release it deserves here in the States is just too far a bridge to cross for most studios, which is why an American remake of The Raid was announced in 2012.
Little was revealed about the remake in the years that followed, other than that original director Gareth Evans would be signing on as an executive producer and that Taylor Kitsch had been cast in the lead role. The film was set to begin production in January of 2015, but due to several undisclosed delays, Kitsch eventually dropped out of the project entirely.
Which brings us to today, when The Raid remake received another pair of blows in the form of its backing studio and its director, who have both backed out of the film. (via Tracking Board):
Sources have confirmed to the Tracking Board that Expendables 3 helmer Patrick Hughes is out as director of The Raid remake. In addition, we’re hearing that the project is no longer at Screen Gems, and that XYZ Films is now the sole production company on the film.
With Screen Gems-and therefore Sony-out of the picture, producers are no doubt seeking a new distributor for the film. XYZ Films has taken over sole production duties, with Aram Tertzakian, Nate Bolotin and Nick Spencer producing, while Kyle Franke oversees for the shingle.
The lone bit of good news to come out of this story is that Warrior and Purge 2 star Frank Grillo, who was previously attached to star in the remake before Kitsch got involved, is back in as the film’s lead. While he obviously doesn’t bring the kind of martial arts expertise to the role that original star Iko Uwais did, Grillo’s previous roles in action-heavy fare offers a little more hope that he’ll be able to pull it off than, say, John Carter.
Then again, I’d have no objections if this remake never saw the light of day, especially considering that we already get what was basically a remake of The Raid with 2012’s Dredd.
Source: Tracking Board
