According to Variety’s Justin Kroll, Ryan Gosling won’t be involved in Nicolas Winding Refn‘s remake of Logan’s Run after all. It was set to be the third collaboration between the pair following Drive and the forthcoming Only God Forgives, but now the project – which is set up over at Warners – is in need of a lead.
There’s not much information here, so trying to come up with a reason would be pure speculation, although Gosling is planning on directing for the first time with How to Catch a Monster in just a few months, so it could be a simple scheduling issue.
The original, based off the novel by William F. Nolan and George Clayton Johnson, told the story of a future that’s (surprise) Dystopian in nature. Michael York played Logan 5, an enforcer charged with killing people who have hit their 30th birthday but have refused a ceremony called “Carrousel” which might be a chance at reincarnation or a front for pure population control. When they run, he chases them down.
While the original film is a lot of depressing fun, a remake wouldn’t be such a bad prospect, especially with an insane person like Refn at the wheel. With Gosling gone, though, it seems all but certain that someone like Colin Farrell will fill the position. Did it just get more generic, or could a new actor bring an even better angle to the project?