Caffeinated Clint
Now that he’s escaped – sounds cooler, no? – from prison, John McTiernan (“Die Hard”, “Predator”, “The Hunt for Red October”) is justifiably looking forward to getting back to doing what he does best – and no, nothing to do with illegal surveillance. The famed director of many a ’90s action-hit tells Empire that he’s fervent about doing a sequel to one of his more popular flicks…. and no, it’s not “Die Hard”. McTiernan spent the majority of his time in the slammer writing a sequel to his “Thomas Crown Affair” (1999) remake.
A sequel to the Pierce Brosnan/Rene Russo starring “Thomas Crown” has been in development for years – at one stage with Paul Verhoeven briefly attached to direct. While it had been reported that the basis of the sequel’s yarn would be inspired by the classic heist film “Topkapi”, the fact that the movie still hasn’t happened would suggest Sony’s up for new suggestions. And McTiernan seemingly has one.
McTiernan’s script is called “Thomas Crown and the Missing Lioness”- and apparently the Lioness doesn’t wear fishnet stockings and give razor-sharp BJs.
“Nebuchadnezzar had two lion statues commissioned in 1100BC: a male and a female,” explained McTiernan of the title. “Alexander the Great took them when he conquered Persia. Mark Antony had them taken to Rome. Constantine moved them to Constantinople. And at some point the lioness went missing. The movie is about what happens when it turns up at an auction. By the way, it’s all bullshit; none of that ever happened.”
Without giving away any details – in terms of how close it is to happening – McTiernan says “It’s really a lot of fun…and I hope I get the chance to make it.”
Another film McTiernan, whose other credits include “Last Action Hero” and “Medicine Man”, has been keen to get up is ”Red Squad”, a “narc thriller that’s rumoured to have Nicolas Cage and Colin Farrell attached. The project has been announced as McTiernan’s comeback and while he told Empire at the end of March that he was unhappy with the current draft, he was hard at work getting it right.”
While the internet is keyed up with hope that McTiernan might consider directing the next “Die Hard” movie – yes, there is another one coming, but considering he’s stayed away from the last couple, it’s unlikely McTiernan will do an about-face and return to the franchise – Empire neglected to ask him how many gold ingots it’d take to make him sign.
