When it was said that “there can be only one,” obviously the original Highlander movie was referring to mystical, sword-wielding immortals and not movies about mystical, sword-wielding immortals because, despite the fact that we were down to one by the end of that first film, sequels were made. And now Lionsgate-Summit seems to be well on their way to making a reboot a reality. They’ve already got Juan Carlos Fresnadillo (28 Weeks Later) on board to direct and a script from screenwriter Melissa Rosenberg, so, after a little casting, things should be good to go.
In an earlier press release announcing the project Summit described this new Highlander’s plot by saying, “In Highlander, after centuries of dueling to survive against others like him, Connor MacLeod, an immortal Scottish swordsman must confront the last of his kind, a murderously brutal barbarian, who lusts for the Prize.” So, basically this is a straight remake of the first film, and though Christopher Lambert was still looking pretty spry the last time I saw him, he’s definitely aged out of playing a hunky immortal. Simply put, we’re gonna need a younger Connor MacLeod.
The new news surrounding this project is that Variety seems to think Fresnadillo has found his man. According to the trade, Ryan Reynolds has been circling the project for quite a while, has long been considered the front-runner for the part, and is currently in negotiations to get something on paper.
While nothing is yet official, it’s looking likely that Reynolds will be taking yet another shot at successfully becoming some sort of superhero. That Blade: Trinity spinoff never quite came together, everyone hated his version of Deadpool in X-Men: Origins, and his take on Green Lantern put a superhero-hungry public to sleep…but maybe this is the one! Or, you know, maybe it won’t be. Isn’t Khal Drogo free to do this thing instead?