Movie reboots always seem to make filmgoers leery, especially when beloved cult classics are involved. When the news first hit the web that Dwayne Johnson would be leading a modern reboot of the John Carpenter classicBig Trouble in Little China, it wasn’t long before the backlash began. Because the original film is so unique, it seems impossible to match, let alone try to recreate with a film remake. It has since been revealed that the film will serve as a continuation to Carpenter’s original rather than simply remaking it. As a potential sequel, this would mean thatKurt Russellcould reprise his starring role from the first one, but don’t get too excited. According to the actor himself in a recent interview, he “probably won’t be” appearing in the film, though he wishes Johnson the best with it.
“He’s just a really good guy. I like working with him and if he’s going to do it, he and his crew will hopefully be able to come up with something that I guess makes the title work.”
Although Russell clearly wishes no ill will towards the production, he doesn’t seem to be any more optimistic about it than the fans. Still,Dwayne Johnsonhas refused to abandon the project, which has now been in development for years. It seems he has appeased some of the outcry by announcing that he won’t be replacing Russell as Jack Burton, portraying a new character set in the same universe instead. Johnson has also gone on the record to say that he’d love to have Carpenter’s input on the project, the director has said he hasn’t yet been contacted. Perhaps this is because the film is still languishing in development hell, but hopefully Johnson will follow through on this promise by giving Carpenter a call.
Of course, it could end up being a while before this sequel actually goes into production. It’s needless to say thatJohnson’s filming schedule is currently packed, as it always is. He is currently hard at work shootingHobbs & Shaw, which is a spinoff to theFast & Furiousfilm franchise. He’s involved in several other upcoming feature films as well, including sequels toJumanji: Welcome to the JungleandSan Andreas. There’s no telling when Johnson will actually be able to start production onBig Trouble in Little Chinaif the project moves forward. More than likely, there are still many fans out there still hoping that it won’t.
Maybe Carpenter himself will be more open to this sequel if he’s given the chance to provide input. He was directly involved with the 2018 sequel to his 1978 horror classicHalloween, serving as an executive producer and creative consultant. Carpenter also worked on the fim’s score with son Cody Carpenter and Daniel Davies. When it comes toBig Trouble in Little China, however, the filmmaker has beenleft completely in the dark, so it’s easy to see why he’s not as thrilled about this reboot from Johnson. At this point, we’ll just need to wait and see what happens.
One thing is for sure, and that’s that there will always be just oneJack Burton. Kurt Russell is by far irreplaceable in that iconic role, so if nothing else, at least Johnson now knows better than to recast it with himself. However the sequel turns out, we’ll always have the original to turn back to and watch. You can read more from Russell’s interview atUSA Today.
