Caffeinated Clint
A couple of days ago, word hit that Fox might be considering sequelizing John Carpenter’s much-loved ’80s supernatural-actioner “Big Trouble in Little China”. For the film’s many fans, and those who adore the regular collaborative union of Kurt Russell and John Carpenter, this was an internet high note.
But seems the rumour was only half right.
Seems Russell won’t be back as Jack Burton, and it’s also unlikely John Carpenter will be back behind the Nikon.
According to, the next “Big Trouble” adventure isn’t so much a sequel, as it is a remake. And it’ll star… Dwayne Johnson.
The Wrap says Johnson, whose “San Andreas” has opened to big numbers and is now Johnson’s biggest solo effort to date, is in talks to star as the heroic bloke pitted against all sorts of supernatural forces in Chinatown, San Francisco.
The new film will be written by “X-Men : First Class” scribes Ashley Miller and Zack Stentz.
Now, while I totally get this, and think ‘The Rock’ could make for a fun, charming Jack Burton – he’s not Jack Burton. Russell is. Just as Snake Plissken will forever be tied to Russell, so is the demon-battling Truck driver. But yet the impending “Escape from New York” remake, the suits don’t want a senior citizen headlining their next big tentpole – and I get that, but it’s still a shame… Russell is as entertaining and as sprightly as ever (we saw that in “Furious 7”), and his popularity seems to be as stout as it ever was. I think, even if teamed with a younger, more bankable box office star of our times, a “Big Trouble 2” – with Russell – might generate a lot more excitement than a [yet another bloody] remake.
Having the ties at studio x realized remakes aren’t working as well? Look at those dim figures on the “Poltergeist” remake, for example! Nobody wants sloppy seconds anymore, they either want original or they want a sequel… with the original, much-loved cast (‘Chewie, we’re home’).
The original 1986 “Big Trouble in Little China” will always have a special place in my heart. Not only was it one of those gems that took us by surprise, and amped our enthusiasm for cinema again, but personally-speaking, it’ll always be connected to the birth of my daughter. Wait.. wait… You see, as I waiting for her mother’s water to break (and yes, there are plenty of others to wait until that happens, usually), I spent the night watching movies – keeping one eye on the impending belly explosion at the same time – and the film I was watching when I was alerted to it being ‘time’ was “Big Trouble in Little China”. I was about 20 minutes out from the end, when I was advised we had to rush to the hospital to.. change my life forever.
But, who knows, maybe in 20 years time someone will be speaking of the ways “Big Trouble” starring Dwayne Johnson changed their life!?
