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| Will Smith lassoes lead role in The Wild Bunch remake | Will Smith lassoes lead role in The Wild Bunch remake |
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| Will Smith is set to star in a modern-day remake of The Wild Bunch, Sam Peckinpah's classic tale of a gang of ageing outlaws organising one last heist in the dying days of the American old west, reports the Wrap. | Will Smith is set to star in a modern-day remake of The Wild Bunch, Sam Peckinpah's classic tale of a gang of ageing outlaws organising one last heist in the dying days of the American old west, reports the Wrap. |
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| A new version of Peckinpah's iconic western has been gestating in Hollywood for almost a decade. The late British director Tony Scott was at one point tipped to direct, with End of Watch's David Ayer having previously been in the hot seat. The latter's idea for a contemporary remake set in Mexico and featuring firefights between CIA agents and drug cartels appears to have survived the long pre-production process. The new take is said to follow a disgraced DEA agent who assembles a team to go after a Mexican drug lord and his fortune. | A new version of Peckinpah's iconic western has been gestating in Hollywood for almost a decade. The late British director Tony Scott was at one point tipped to direct, with End of Watch's David Ayer having previously been in the hot seat. The latter's idea for a contemporary remake set in Mexico and featuring firefights between CIA agents and drug cartels appears to have survived the long pre-production process. The new take is said to follow a disgraced DEA agent who assembles a team to go after a Mexican drug lord and his fortune. |
| Smith would presumably play the DEA agent, and the Wrap says studio Warner Bros would look to surround him with a strong ensemble. However, it's not clear at this stage how the new Wild Bunch would connect to its celebrated predecessor, other than via the title. Peckinpah's film, which starred William Holden, Ernest Borgnine, Robert Ryan and Warren Oates, presented a torrid paean to a more dangerous time when lawmen and criminals were often separated by circumstance alone. The titular Bunch were members of a gang eking out a living on the Tex-Mex border in 1913 as the old west segues into civilised 20th-century modernity. | Smith would presumably play the DEA agent, and the Wrap says studio Warner Bros would look to surround him with a strong ensemble. However, it's not clear at this stage how the new Wild Bunch would connect to its celebrated predecessor, other than via the title. Peckinpah's film, which starred William Holden, Ernest Borgnine, Robert Ryan and Warren Oates, presented a torrid paean to a more dangerous time when lawmen and criminals were often separated by circumstance alone. The titular Bunch were members of a gang eking out a living on the Tex-Mex border in 1913 as the old west segues into civilised 20th-century modernity. |
| In many ways the remake would be Smith's first proper western, the actor having previously appeared only in the comedy Wild Wild West. Quentin Tarantino initially wanted him for his Oscar-winning spaghetti western homage Django Unchained, but Smith was concerned that the role of Django was not a genuine lead, and the part went to Jamie Foxx instead. | In many ways the remake would be Smith's first proper western, the actor having previously appeared only in the comedy Wild Wild West. Quentin Tarantino initially wanted him for his Oscar-winning spaghetti western homage Django Unchained, but Smith was concerned that the role of Django was not a genuine lead, and the part went to Jamie Foxx instead. |
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