The cult classic Highlander (1986) may be getting a remake trilogy courtesy of John Wick director Chad Stahelski. It’s probably not going to happen anytime soon though.
The What Now?
Apparently, sometime between the first and second John Wick movies, director Chad Stahelski also decided to sign up for the Highlander remake movie. This is quite the bold move from him, considering that the project has been in development hell since 2008. Multiple directors have come and gone, and no one could really agree as to who would play which character. At one point, Ryan Reynolds (AKA. Deadpool) was set to star in the remake, but that never materialized either. The only thing anyone can agree on is the title, which is apparently Highlander: The Reckoning. Even that though, might be subject to change.
The Director Strikes Back?
All that might change with Chad Stahelski. He confirms in a recent interview that he’s still working on the Highlander remake. Apparently, one reason why it’s taking so long is because he plans on making it into a trilogy comparable to the Star Wars trilogy. To quote him, he said that he was apparently:
–taking all the good stuff that we had before I was involved in the project from the script; redeveloping the script to give us really good chapters one, two and three; and expanding the world. The vision we’re trying to get across and what we’re trying to develop, I equate very close to Star Wars. The first one us a very satisfying ending but it does leave the door open and that’s kind of how I see this. I would really like to expand it over three. I see the gathering happening over three. It’s tricky don’t get me wrong, that’s why we’re still developing it. We want to be able to tell three complete stories that all kind of fit. I think the Star Wars trilogy, at least up to The Empire Strikes Back, is a good example of how we want to process it.”
Chad Stalhelski
Does this mean that we’ll get a Star Wars-like modern remake of Highlander? We shall see, but the one thing we know is that it won’t be happening anytime soon. Chad Stalhelski still has one more John Wick movie to make, and that won’t be out until May 27, 2022. So who knows how long it’ll be before we see a Highlander trilogy.
Highlander? You mean the Scottish guy from Braveheart?
For those of who have no idea what I’m talking about, here’s the low-down. Highlander is a 1986 British fantasy adventure movie directed by Russell Mulcahy. The plot centers around a group of warriors who are, by unknown means, immortal. Perfectly and completely immortal…almost. The only way they can be killed is by cutting their heads off. You’d think they’d just take it easy and live a quiet life then, but no. All of these immortals are just going around killing each other via head chopping.
There’s actually a method to their madness though. Whenever one immortal slays another, the winner gets a surge of power called “The Quickening”. Yeah, it just looks like they’re climaxing amidst a whole bunch of lightning and shiny shiny-ness. Weird, but it somehow works.
Top top it all off: when only one immortal is left, that one will receive some kind of godlike power that will let that immortal reshape the world. Whether it’s to benefit the world, enslave it, or destroy it is up to the one immortal left alive at the end. This is why the immortals fight: to ensure that the wrong immortal doesn’t get that power. And there are some bad, bad immortals out there. Of note is someone called The Kurgan, who seems to be trying really hard to be both a Khornate berserker and a disciple of Slaanesh all at once.
All in all, Highlander is a rather odd but entrancing movie. If you’re looking for an oldie to watch while you’re staying at home, this is one I’d recommend.
Conclusion
Highlander, the film, not the TV series, might be getting a trilogy remake by the director of John Wick. It might take a while before we see any meaningful progress on it, maybe even years. It might even end up being put back into development hell. Stay tuned for more.
Source: JoBlo.com
