There Was A Planned Escape From New York Reboot From An 80s Movie Legend
Sigh...
Remakes are the name of the game in Hollywood these days (and really all days). At times, Hollywood delivers a worthy one like John Carpenter’s The Thing, but most of the time, they deliver pure crap like Len Wiseman’s Total Recall. It seems like nothing is safe from being remade, rebooted, prequelized, or sequelized in Hollywood. One that seemed to be gaining real steam was Joel Silver rebooting John Carpenter’s Escape From New York.
According to Deadline at the time, Joel Silver’s Silver Pictures and Studio Canal were planning to bring back Bob “Snake” Plissken to the big screen with a new remake.
Joel Silver planned to expand Escape From New York with an origin story similar in tone to Rise of the Planet of the Apes and then set up the rest of the films in the would-be trilogy. Silver Pictures and Studio Canal have already started looking for a writer and possible leading men to play Snake Plissken.
New Line Cinema had the remake rights to Escape From New York back in 2011, but the rights lapsed, and Joel Silver acquired them. When the project was with New Line Cinema, Neil Moritz was set to produce, Allan Loeb (The Switch) was hired to write the film’s screenplay, and Breck Eisner (The Crazies) was in line to direct. Actors Gerard Butler, Jeremy Renner, and Tom Hardy were all considered for the role Kurt Russell made iconic in 1981.
Unfortunately, Joel Silver’s planned Escape from New York reboot never gained enough steam. Rumors abound that the film suffered a major setback behind the scenes, though specifics about the problem haven’t been detailed.
It’s a shame, too, considering Joel Silver has some of the 1980s and 1990s best (read: most entertaining) movies on his resume. Movies like 48 Hrs, Commando, Lethal Weapon, Die Hard, Predator, Road House, Demolition Man, and even The Matrix are just a few. This dude has had a ton of success to say the least. Giving him a crack at Escape from New York would have made all the sense in the world.
That world of Escape from New York? Well, in the distant future of “1997,” the Isle of Manhattan — with crime out of control — has become a maximum-security prison. But when the President of the United States (Donald Pleasence) crashes in New York City, a convicted, eye patch-wearing bank robber named Bob “Snake” Plissken is sent in for a rescue. There was also a sequel movie directed by John Carpenter and starring Kurt Russell titled Escape From L.A. made in 1996.
