Jack Nicholson in ‘One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest’. Photo: United Artists.
Preview:
A ‘One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest’ TV adaptation is in development.
It’ll focus on the character of the Chief from the 1975 Oscar winner.
Producer Paul Zaentz, one of the rights holders, is behind the new project.
There are always concerns when a spin-off of a classic movie is announced. Will it tarnish the legacy of the original? Will it go off in some random direction and end up far less entertaining than the movie from which it derives?
In the case of 1975’s multiple Oscar-winning drama ‘One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest’, there is plenty of reason to worry. But with the rights in the hands of producer Paul Zaentz –– nephew of ‘Cuckoo’ producer Saul Zaentz –– it appears the forward movement on a TV take on the story is proceeding with all due caution and respect.
What was the story of ‘One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest’?
Jack Nicholson in ‘One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest’. Photo: United Artists.
The movie, directed by Milos Forman, was written by Lawrence Hauben and Bo Goldman, and adapted both Ken Kesey’s book and the play created from it by Dale Wasserman.
It follows a unruly convict Randle Patrick McMurphy (Jack Nicholson), who is sent to a psychiatric hospital for evaluation in 1963 Oregon, and encourages his docile companions to take more control of their lives and defy the tyrannical head nurse.
Chief Bromden (played in the movie by Will Sampson) is the towering half-Native American patient who pretends to be deaf and mute. Over time, the antics of protagonist McMurphy coax him out of his disguise and he becomes a symbol of powerful resistance and emancipation. The book focuses more on Bromden.
Kesey famously didn’t like the film, feeling that it deviated too far from the source.
While he might not have approved of the adaptation, audiences and critics certainly did; it earned $109 million worldwide on a $3 million budget, and won five Academy Awards from eight nominations, including Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Actor for Nicholson, Best Actress for Fletcher and Best Director for Forman.
What will the ‘One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest’ TV series focus on?
(L to R) Will Sampson and Jack Nicholson in ‘One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest’. Photo: United Artists.
Here’s what Paul Zaentz told the podcast about the show:
“I’ve signed an agreement with Ken Kesey’s widow to develop a TV series which we’ll make through the point of view of the Chief for the first season. Following the first season, we’ll see what happens to the Chief after he escapes [from the psychiatric hospital].”
Beyond that, details are scarce on this one –– Zaentz has yet to reveal who might be writing the show, or whether he has a studio involved.
And it’s not the first time someone has approached him and the other rights holders about a remake or spin-off.
Michael Douglas, who was also among the producers on the original, told Deadline as part of a retrospective earlier this year, that the team has been careful in what they agree to:
“[Paul] has been very selective and I think that was the only time they’ve done one, which is good because so much gets remade these days…as for the series, it was ok, just ok. I wasn’t very much involved, to be honest.”
The “series” in question was 2020’s Ryan Murphy-produced Netflix series ‘Ratched,’ which charted the earlier days of the title character.
With Sarah Paulson in the lead, ‘Ratched’ is set in in 1947, when Mildred Ratched begins working as a nurse at a leading psychiatric hospital. But beneath her stylish exterior lurks a growing darkness.
The show received mixed-positive reviews but hasn’t progressed past its original season. Paul Zaentz was involved as a producer.
In the podcast interview, he’s clear that he doesn’t think that targeting classic movies for remakes in the traditional theatrical sense is worth it, but that TV can be a place for more nuance and character development, offering the chance to do something fresh.
When will the ‘One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest’ TV series be on screens?
With no creative team, cast or even production company/network or streamer involved yet, it’s far too early to guess when this might arrive.
Still, Netflix –– which backed ‘Ratched’ and has also been behind TV adaptations of movies such as ‘Ripley’ –– might well be a leading candidate to take this on.
(L to R) Jack Nicholson and Will Sampson in ‘One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest’. Photo: United Artists.
Joaquin Phoenix in Director Todd Phillips’ ‘Joker: Folie à Deux.’ Photo courtesy of Todd Phillips’ Instagram account.
While the sequel to 2019’s Oscar-winning ‘Joker‘, ‘Joker: Folie à Deux‘ failed to score with audiences at the box office, there is no denying that the DC Comics character is one of the most popular villains in pop culture history.
Ledger and Phoenix would both go on to receive Academy Awards for their performances, making both of them the only actors in history to win Oscars for playing a comic book character, and Joker the only character to ever receive that an honor.
With ‘Joker: Folie à Deux’ currently in theaters, Moviefone is counting down every live-action Joker appearance ever, on both TV and film, including the latest.
(L to R) Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn and Jared Leto as The Joker in ‘Suicide Squad’. Photo: Warner Bros.
From DC Comics comes the ‘Suicide Squad’, an antihero team of incarcerated supervillains who act as deniable assets for the United States government, undertaking high-risk black ops missions in exchange for commuted prison sentences.
While struggling with his dual identity, Arthur Fleck (Joaquin Phoenix) not only stumbles upon true love, but also finds the music that’s always been inside him.
Barry Keoghan as the Joker in ‘The Batman’. Photo: Warner Bros.
From Warner Bros. Pictures comes Matt Reeves‘ ‘The Batman’, starring Robert Pattinson in the dual role of Gotham City’s vigilante detective and his alter ego, reclusive billionaire Bruce Wayne.
(L to R) Lee Meriwether as The Catwoman, Frank Gorshin as The Riddler, Burgess Meredith as The Penguin and Cesar Romero as the Joker in the 1966 movie ‘Batman’. Photo: 20th Century-Fox.
Cameron Monaghan as “J” in ‘Gotham’. Photo: Warner Bros. Television.
Everyone knows the name Commissioner Gordon (Ben McKenzie). He is one of the crime world’s greatest foes, a man whose reputation is synonymous with law and order. But what is known of Gordon’s story and his rise from rookie detective to Police Commissioner? What did it take to navigate the multiple layers of corruption that secretly ruled Gotham City, the spawning ground of the world’s most iconic villains? And what circumstances created them – the larger-than-life personas who would become Catwoman (Camren Bicondova), The Penguin (Robin Lord Taylor), The Riddler (Cory Michael Smith), Two-Face (Nicholas D’Agosta) and The Joker (Cameron Monaghan)?
Jared Leto as Joker in ‘Zack Snyder’s Justice League’. Photo: Max.
Determined to ensure Superman’s (Henry Cavill) ultimate sacrifice was not in vain, Bruce Wayne (Ben Affleck) aligns forces with Diana Prince (Gal Gadot) with plans to recruit a team of metahumans to protect the world from an approaching threat of catastrophic proportions. The task proves more difficult than Bruce imagined, as each of the recruits must face the demons of their own pasts to transcend that which has held them back, allowing them to come together, finally forming an unprecedented league of heroes. Now united, Batman (Affleck), Wonder Woman (Gadot), Aquaman (Jason Momoa), Cyborg (Ray Fisher), and The Flash (Ezra Miller) may be too late to save the planet from Steppenwolf (Ciarán Hinds), DeSaad (Peter Guinness), and Darkseid (Ray Porter) and their dreadful intentions.
Cesar Romero as the Joker on the 1966 TV series ‘Batman’. Photo: 20th Century-Fox Television.
Wealthy entrepreneur Bruce Wayne (Adam West) and his ward Dick Grayson (Burt Ward) lead a double life: they are actually crime fighting duo Batman and Robin. A secret Batpole in the Wayne mansion leads to the Batcave, where Police Commissioner Gordon (Neil Hamilton) often calls with the latest emergency threatening Gotham City. Racing to the scene of the crime in the Batmobile, Batman and Robin must (with the help of their trusty Bat-utility-belt) thwart the efforts of a variety of master criminals, including The Riddler (Frank Gorshin), The Joker (Cesar Romero), Catwoman (Julie Newmar), and The Penguin (Burgess Meredith).
Joaquin Phoenix as Arthur Fleck/Joker in ‘Joker’. Photo: Warner Bros.
During the 1980s, a failed stand-up comedian (Joaquin Phoenix) is driven insane and turns to a life of crime and chaos in Gotham City while becoming an infamous psychopathic crime figure.
Jack Nicolson as the Joker in 1989’s ‘Batman’. Photo: Warner Bros.
Batman (Michael Keaton) must face his most ruthless nemesis when a deformed madman calling himself “The Joker” (Jack Nicholson) seizes control of Gotham’s criminal underworld.
Heath Ledger as the Joker in ‘The Dark Knight’. Photo: Warner Bros.
Batman (Christian Bale) raises the stakes in his war on crime. With the help of Lt. Jim Gordon (Gary Oldman) and District Attorney Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart), Batman sets out to dismantle the remaining criminal organizations that plague the streets. The partnership proves to be effective, but they soon find themselves prey to a reign of chaos unleashed by a rising criminal mastermind known to the terrified citizens of Gotham as the Joker (Heath Ledger).
Shelley Duvall in ‘The Shining’. Photo: Warner Bros.
Preview:
Actor Shelley Duvall has died at the age of 75.
She’ll forever be remembered for ‘The Shining’.
Duvall was a favorite collaborator of director Robert Altman.
Shelley Duvall, who seared herself into the public imagination as the harried yet resourceful Wendy Torrance opposite an axe-wielding Jack Nicholson in ‘The Shining’, died at home in Texas from complications of diabetes. She was 75.
Yet ‘The Shining’ was just one role in a varied and creative career, partly marked by collaborations with Robert Altman.
(Center) Shelley Duvall in ‘Nashville’. Photo: Paramount Pictures.
Shelley Alexis Duvall was born in Fort Worth, Texas in 1949, and was soon recognized as an artistic soul with boundless energy (her childhood nickname was “Manic Mouse”). But she initially took science courses and even sold cosmetics.
Still, fate, in the form of a fortuitous party encounter, had other plans.
Discovered by talent scouts working for director Robert Altman in 1970, Duvall found herself thrust into the world of filmmaking. Despite having no prior acting experience, her infectious energy and unique presence impressed Altman. He cast her in the black comedy ‘Brewster McCloud,’ marking the beginning of a fruitful collaboration. Duvall, initially hesitant about acting, found herself drawn to Altman’s unconventional style and willingness to explore the fringes of human behavior.
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This became a hallmark of Duvall’s career. She wasn’t afraid to take on challenging, often quirky roles. She reunited with Altman for films like ‘McCabe & Mrs. Miller’, ‘Thieves Like Us’ and ‘Nashville‘ showcasing her versatility and ability to portray complex characters with depth and nuance.
“He offers me damn good roles. None of them have been alike. He has a great confidence in me, and a trust and respect for me, and he doesn’t put any restrictions on me or intimidate me, and I love him. I remember the first advice he ever gave me: ‘Don’t take yourself seriously.’ Sometimes I find myself feeling self-centered, and then all of a sudden that bit of advice will pop into my head and I’ll laugh.”
Shelley Duvall and ‘The Shining’
(L to R) Director Stanley Kubrick and Shelley Duvall on the set of ‘The Shining’. Photo: Warner Bros.
The turning point for Duvall came in 1980. Director Stanley Kubrick, notorious for his demanding style, cast Duvall alongside Nicholson in his classic psychological horror film infamously adapted from Stephen King’s book.
Her portrayal of a writer’s wife unraveling alongside him in a haunted hotel, became iconic. Duvall’s commitment to the role was legendary, with the filming process taking an emotional toll. Yet her performance delivered a masterclass in portraying emotional descent and sheer terror, forever etching Wendy Torrance in the annals of horror cinema.
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Shelley Duvall: Other Work and Later Struggles
(L to R) Shelley Duvall and Robin Williams in 1980’s ‘Popeye’. Photo: Paramount Pictures.
Torrance may be the role for which she’s remembered, but she brought warmth and humor to films like Altman’s ‘Popeye’ opposite Robin Williams, and ‘Time Bandits’ with Sean Connery.
The 1990s saw a shift in Duvall’s career. Public appearances became less frequent, and she took on fewer roles. Personal struggles became a focus of unwanted media attention. Yet, she continued to act sporadically, appearing in films such as ‘The Underneath’ and ‘The Portrait of a Lady’. Her final on-screen appearance was 2022 horror film ‘The Forest Hills.’
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Shelley Duvall: Tribute
Dan Gilroy, Duvall’s partner since 1989, wrote the following tribute:
“My dear, sweet, wonderful life partner and friend left us. Too much suffering lately, now she’s free. Fly away, beautiful Shelley.”
Shelley Duvall in ‘The Shining’. Photo: Warner Bros.
He’ll be remembered for movies such as ‘Little Shop of Horrors’ and ‘Boxcar Bertha’ and many more.
Roger Corman, who became famous –– and sometimes infamous –– for his B-movie output and championing of other filmmakers, died on May 9th aged 98.
Corman was known for opening doors to many others through his work and movies, and while he didn’t win Oscars or see huge box office with his films, he had a huge impact on cinema and pop culture.
Born in Detroit, Corman moved with his family in 1940 to Los Angeles. He attended Beverly Hills High School and then Stanford, majoring in engineering. He admitted to being infatuated by movies from the time he came to California.
Yet if he had dreams of entering the movie world as soon as possible, he was stymied by military service and education elsewhere, including at Oxford in England. The early 1950s saw him working odd jobs and collecting unemployment and that period led to a renewed spark in his chosen career: while working as a script reader, he figured he could do better, sitting down to write ‘Highway Dragnet’ and selling the screenplay to Allied Artists for $4,000.
That, plus cash scrounged up from family and friends saw him launch his time as a producer, bringing ‘The Monster From the Ocean Floor’ to screens.
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He joined forces with Sam Arkoff of American International Pictures and between 1955-60 Corman produced or directed more than 30 films for AIP, all budgeted at less than $100,000 and produced in two weeks or less. They included Westerns (‘Five Guns West,’ ‘Gunslinger’); horror and science fiction (‘Day the World Ended,’ ‘The Undead’); as well as teen movies such as ‘Carnival Rock’ and ‘Rock All Night.’
Yet it was in the B-movie world that Corman truly flourished, spinning low budgets into small hits and churning out content, including a run of Edgar Allen Poe adaptations.
He also backed arthouse films from around the world, including work by the likes of Ingrid Bergman and Werner Herzog. He reinvented their marketing and distribution, booking them in a wider variety of venues and giving audiences outsides the major cities a taste of world cinema they had not previously enjoyed.
“His films were revolutionary and iconoclastic, and captured the spirit of an age. When asked how he would like to be remembered, he said, ‘I was a filmmaker, just that.’”
Moviefone recently had the pleasure of speaking with Noah Wyle about his work on ‘At the Gates,’ his first reaction to the screenplay, collaborating with director Augustus Meleo Bernstein, the rehearsal process, his character’s marriage, working with Miranda Otto and the rest of the cast, the benefits of shooting on one set, and making a movie with an important message, as well as looking back at his work on the classic ‘A Few Good Men’ and his best Jack Nicholson story.
Noah Wyle in a scene from ‘At The Gates,’ written, directed, and produced by Augustus Meleo Bernstein. Copyright: Beacon Pictures 2022.
Moviefone: To begin with, what was your first reaction to Augustus Meleo Bernstein’s screenplay and what were some of the themes that you were excited to explore as an actor?
Noah Wyle: Well, it was a classic page turner. I didn’t know where it was going or where these characters were coming from for the longest time. I thought, “Oh, I hope this doesn’t fall apart or crash like some sad souffle in the end because he’s setting a really wonderful table here.” Then it just stayed consistent all the way throughout. I thought, “Well, very sophisticated script. I wonder if he’s as good of a filmmaker as his script needs the film to be.” When I met him, I was so impressed by his thoughtfulness, his attention to detail, and his filmic nature. Very quickly I realized he was somebody I could put all my trust into and have a lovely collaborative experience with.
MF: I understand that Augustus arranged a rehearsal period for the actors before shooting and that some of the improvisations from those rehearsals ended up in the final film. What was it like for you to work in that way?
NW: Well, rehearsal is usually the first thing that gets cut for budgetary purposes. So just to get a rehearsal day was a luxury that is very rarely afforded, and it’s such a necessity. If you really want to do good work, you must rehearse. So, it’s such shortsighted thinking to think that that’s a place to save (money) because ultimately, you’re going to ask all these questions on set and these are all going to be time-consuming questions, and you’re going to watch your day go down the drain, and you’re going to really wish you had worked this stuff out prior. So, Augustus either intuitively knew that or just thought because the script was written with sparsity, we needed to flesh these characters out with three-dimensionality, and these relationships needed to have history and weight to them, where I haven’t written it, but we need to feel it. So those improvisations were great to get at the essence of what the scenes were about from Peter’s perspective, and from his wife’s perspective. How we would deal with this if this were attacking our life. So, it was very one-to-one work, right? Because you’re going on an instinctual level and then Augie recorded it. So, a lot of those things that came up that were visceral reactions for both Miranda and I and became text in the dialogue that we played. So, it felt very organic to work that way, and it was a seamless way to create that three-dimensionality. So, I thought it was great.
(L to R) Noah Wyle and director/writer/producer Augustus Meleo Bernstein on the set of ‘At The Gates.’ Copyright Beacon Pictures 2022.
MF: What was your experience like working with director Augustus Meleo Bernstein and as an actor, what are you looking for from a director on set?
NW: He’s a rare breed. It’s very rare that you meet a writer/director who’s also an excellent communicator and can tell you the picture that they see so clearly in their head in words that are playable as an actor. If they are good at articulating it, then they’re usually very dictatorial about getting exactly what they want. Augustus was just the opposite. He was really collegiate and collaborative, and wanted to hear all of our ideas, and gave us the illusion that he was looking around for the best idea when in fact he was looking around for different pieces to be utilized in his overall idea, which just denotes a lot more experience than he’s had and makes them that much more impressive. Specificity is the key for me. There was a moment early in the process where we went in to shoot some still photographs to have around the house as set dressing, some family photos, and the way that Augustus directed us to pose for those photos that were going to be basically props were so specific. I thought, “This guy, I can trust this guy. He’s not going to let one moment go by. He’s not going to miss an opportunity to find drama if he wants these pictures to have a certain look and feel so that if the camera goes past them, we’ll get it.” I love that.
MF: Can you talk about Peter and Marianne’s marriage, and what it was like working on that relationship with Miranda Otto?
NW: Well, I backed into Peter. It was interesting. I’ve done a couple of interviews with Ezekiel Pacheco. We’ve talked about his character and my character. It’s for the first time I’m able to see the cross trajectories of our arcs in terms of testosterone and machismo. His character is coming into his own as a man and being increasingly assertive and taking more of a stake of ownership and authorship to his destiny as the movie goes on. Whereas we watch Peter do the exact opposite. He is feeling like he’s losing credibility, he’s losing relevance, he’s losing power, and he’s losing control. He’s on the reactive side of circumstances completely and is trying to get ahead of the narrative. These two men meet at this really critical juncture, and it fuels these scenes and these dynamics because you’re watching a culture clash. They’re from totally different lives that have nothing to do with each other, nothing in common, and must find out some commonality. I found that exciting. So, to answer your question, Peter’s fear and Peter’s cowardice were two very defining characteristics, two aspects that you never want to show your wife. So that is where it starts. It starts with knowing that everything I say is going to be a lie because I can’t tell you the truth about how I feel because you’re not strong enough to handle my truth. Then she’s coming at it from the exact same standpoint, and intimate scenes become power plays always because everybody’s got a secret that they’re not willing to share. That makes these scenes really loaded, fun, multi-leveled and engaging.
(L to R) Miranda Otto and Noah Wyle in a scene from ‘At The Gates,’ Written, Directed, and produced by Augustus Meleo Bernstein. Copyright: Beacon Pictures 2022.
MF: Can you talk about the mistrust that builds between Peter and Nico, and what it was like for you working with young actor Ezekiel Pacheco?
NW: Well, this film really plays with perception. On the surface, you’re looking at the classic affluent American family, mother, father, son, daughter, beautiful house, and beautiful life. Then as the film progresses, you peak and you peel away at that veneer and realize, “Oh no, there’s all sorts of pathology going on here, and these people aren’t connecting at all. What I’m looking at is people that are projecting an image of what they wish were true that is really not quite tied to reality.” Similarly, you get the same parallel storyline on Nico’s side where you look at a mother and son domestic workers, and immediately you want to ascribe all sorts of superficial judgments to that relationship and to those people. As the film progresses, you realize, “Oh no, these people were fleeing absolute terror. They’re incredibly intelligent, they’re incredibly forward thinking and ambitious,” and all those things that you wouldn’t necessarily see at a first glance. So, my hope is that people come away from watching the movie and going, “Wow. When I think about the immigration issue and concept, I think of it as a very black and white issue, and now I’m being faced with all sorts of gradations of gray and complexity that I never would’ve thought about.”
MF: As an actor, is it nice being in a project that is entertaining but also has an important mention about the world we live in?
NW: It’s especially gratifying when it’s a bit of a Trojan horse where you don’t really see it coming. You bought a ticket for one movie, and you get a little bit extra, and it doesn’t feel polemical or like a diatribe. There’s no real political message that’s being shoved down your throat. It’s very presentational, but you come away with a little bit of an education you didn’t get before because you thought you were just going to be seeing a thriller.
(L to R) Noah Wyle, Vanessa Benavente, Ezekiel Pacheco, Sadie Stanley and Miranda Otto on the set of ‘At The Gates,’ written, directed, and produced by Augustus Meleo Bernstein. Copyright: Beacon Pictures 2022.
MF: Because all the characters are forced to live under one roof during the movie, there is a feeling of claustrophobia that sets in. Since you were shooting on primarily one set, did that sense of claustrophobia become real for you as an actor?
NW: Totally. Well, this film was made for under a million dollars, which you don’t really want to call attention to because the film stands alone without having to bear in mind that it was made from very little money. But I do think it’s important to recognize that this was out of necessity. It found its style and its tone. I remember seeing ‘La La Land’ and thinking, “I don’t like it very much.” Then I found out what it was made for, and I had to grade it on a whole other criterion because if it had been made for a hundred million dollars, it’s not a great Hollywood musical, but knowing what it was made for, it’s an incredibly impressive piece of work. Similarly, here where there’s a lot of stuff on the screen in this movie that is cool, and it’s even cooler to know how it was made by very young people with very little money who just had a clear idea of what they wanted to accomplish. To answer your question about the house, yes, it’s very claustrophobic because we couldn’t get any of the rooms that we were shooting in dirty. So, we all had to wear booties on our feet, and we couldn’t go in certain places because the house was a character and the house needed to be always in pristine shape. So, you always felt like you were limited to a chair that you were sitting in when you weren’t working, and then you were limited to your play space when you were working and then back to your chair when you weren’t working. So, it did feel very claustrophobic.
Noah Wyle in director Rob Reiner’s ‘A Few Good Men.’ Photo: Columbia Pictures.
MF: Finally, last year marked the 30th anniversary of ‘A Few Good Men,’ which was one of your first feature films. What are your memories of working on that movie and being a part of that film’s legacy?
NW: Only positive. I’ve become good friends subsequently with Kevin Pollak, and we did remark with each other that it’s been 30 years since we played those courtroom scenes, and that movie still holds up great. So, a friend of mine watched it on an airplane recently and said they still enjoyed it all the way through. That was one of the great jobs for me because I was such a relative newcomer on a very impressive cast list. I was driving the Jeep with Tom Cruise, Demi Moore and Kevin Pollak, and there’s Kevin Bacon and Jack Nicholson. I mean, everybody’s in that movie. I just wanted to come in and not make anybody notice that I was there. I just wanted to come in, do my job, and have them just be part of the fabric. It was good. I was happy on that one.
MF: Were you ever on set at the same time as Jack Nicholson? Do you have a good Nicholson story?
NW: The only time I was ever on set with Jack Nicholson, he walked past me, and I don’t think he would mind me sharing this anecdote. All I ever heard him say out loud was, “Anybody mind if I have a left-handed cigarette?” He then lit up a joint right there on the soundstage. This is in 1992, back when you weren’t allowed to smoke joints anywhere in California, let alone on a soundstage. I remember just going like, “Oh, you can do that?”
Jack Nicholson in director Rob Reiner’s ‘A Few Good Men.’ Photo: Columbia Pictures.
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What is the plot of ‘At the Gates’?
Ana (Vanessa Benavente), a housekeeper from El Salvador, brings her teenage son Nico (Ezekiel Pacheco) to help her clean an affluent family’s Los Angeles home. But after being told by her employers, Marianne (Miranda Otto) and Peter Barris (Noah Wyle), that immigration officers are searching for her, she accepts the invitation to shelter in their house until the crisis blows over. As days go by and the interactions between the two families become increasingly tense, Nico begins to question their hosts’ true intentions.
(L to R) Noah Wyle, Sadie Stanley and Jake Eyman in a scene from ‘At The Gates,’ written, directed, and produced by Augustus Meleo Bernstein. Copyright: Beacon Pictures 2022.
(L to R) Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper in 1969’s ‘Easy Rider.’
Is there truly any movie that someone won’t consider remaking nowadays? Are we moments away from hearing that a ‘Citizen Kane’ redo, about a tech billionaire obsessed with NFTs (or, er, Twitter), is being thrown into production with Adam McKay directing.
All right, so we’ll take off our cynical goggles and give it to you straight: a group of companies that own the rights to 1969 counterculture classic ‘Easy Rider’ is looking to mount a redo.
The gaggle of finance types and producers, which according to Variety includes Maurice Fadida’s Kodiak Pictures, Defiant Studios’ Eric B. Fleischman, and the Jean Boulle Group, has announced its intent to make a new version of the movie.
In the original, best friends and free-spirited hippies––Wyatt, aka Captain America (Peter Fonda), and Billy (Dennis Hopper)––set off on a long journey from Los Angeles to New Orleans after completing a lucrative cocaine deal. In high hopes of making it in time for Mardi Gras, the duo of motorcycle rebels zoom through the quiet United States heartland in their chromed custom-made Harley Davidson chopper bikes, as a vibrant tapestry of diverse people, friends and foes, and unparalleled landscapes unfold. They’re in search of that so-called independence, even though malicious animosity and senseless violence get in the way. Can the two easy riders beat the system and sail into the sunset?
(L to R) Peter Fonda, Jack Nicholson, and Dennis Hopper in 1969’s ‘Easy Rider.’
Hopper and Fonda wrote the drug-laden motorcycle epic with Terry Southern, and Hopper directed. It featured an early role for a young Jack Nicholson, and despite its counterculture nature, was embraced by culture in general, earning two Oscar nominations and entering contention for the Cannes Film Festival’s coveted Palme d’Or.
It also made $60 million at the worldwide box office on a reported $400,000 budget and has long since been popping up on lists of the Best American Movies. And yes, while people will be up in arms about a reboot, let’s not forget that a sequel rode in back in 2012, focusing on Wyatt’s family legacy.
“Our goal is to build upon the counterculture and freedom narrative the original left us with and give the youth of today a film that pays serious attention to their own countercultures and challenges,” Fadida tells Variety. “What the young viewers of today are experiencing in their everyday lives may seem crazy to older generations, but it can very well become the societal norm, as was the case with the cultural shift of the late 1960s. We are hoping to play a part in that shift.”
The inspiration reportedly came from how the ‘Creed’ franchise has continued the story of ‘Rocky’ but with a modern eye and new characters. Yet while ‘Rocky’ spawned its own series of follow-ups (of mixed quality), ‘Easy Rider’ stands alone (no one is counting the sequel). We’ll see how far this one makes it down the road.
Peter Fonda in 1969’s ‘Easy Rider.’
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It’s been 30 years since the world was gripped by Bat-Mania. “Batman” truly dominated the summer movie season in 1989, giving starving superhero fans a taste of a darker, more dramatic Caped Crusader. While we wait for the dark Knight to return to the big screen in 2021’s “The Batman,” learn more about the making of Tim Burton‘s epic superhero revamp.
1. The origins of “Batman” can be traced back to 1979, when producers Benjamin Melniker and Michael E. Uslan purchased the rights to the franchise from DC Comics in the hope of making a darker movie more in line with the original Bob Kane/Bill Finger comics.
2. The project went through numerous incarnations over the course of that next decade. At one point “Ghostbusters” director Ivan Reitman pitched a more comedic take starring Bill Murray as Batman and Eddie Murphy as Robin.
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3. Despite this prolonged period of development, WB didn’t officially greenlight “Batman” until Tim Burton’s “Beetlejuice” became a box office success in 1988.
4. Burton has admitted to never having read the Batman comics before being hired as director, though this is due to his dyslexia rather than an actual distaste for the source material (as many detractors have claimed). Burton has also said the 1988 graphic novel “Batman: The Killing Joke” helped him gain a better handle on the Batman/Joker dynamic while preparing for the job.
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5.Jack Nicholson negotiated an extremely favorable deal with WB that granted him top billing in the credits, control over his shooting schedule and percentage points of both the box office gross and merchandise sales.
6. In fact, Nicholson’s deal is considered to be one of the most lucrative in Hollywood history. He’s estimated to have earned at least $100 million from the franchise over the years, including being compensated for sequels in which he never appeared.
Warner Bros.
7. Nicholson may have eventually reprised his role had the series not been rebooted following 1997’s “Batman and Robin.” A planned fifth movie called “Batman Unchained” would have featured the Joker returning in the form of a hallucination caused by Scarecrow’s fear gas. That story pitch also introduced Harley Quinn as the vengeful daughter of Jack Napier.
8.Robin Williams lobbied for the Joker role and came very close to winning the part when it appeared Nicholson would bow out. Williams’ remained bitter about losing the role for many years, even refusing the opportunity to play The Riddler in 1995’s “Batman Forever.”
Warner Bros.
9.Michael Keaton improvised some of Batman’s most memorable lines in the movie, including the now-iconic “I’m Batman.” The script has the character instead saying, “I am the night.”
10. The newspaper cartoonist’s rendition of “The Bat-Man” is actually drawn by Batman co-creator Bob Kane. Kane was also supposed to have played the cartoonist, but he fell ill during filming.
Warner Bros.
11. To date, this is the only theatrical Batman movie to feature exactly one supervillain from the comics. Every other Batman movie has included at least two villains.
12.Pat Hingle (Commissioner Gordon) and Michael Gough (Alfred Pennyworth) are the only two “Batman” actors to reprise their roles in all three sequels.
Warner Bros.
13. Sam Hamm’s original screenplay included a pre-Robin Dick Grayson. Child actor Ricky Addison Reed was cast in the role, but the character was cut when Warren Skarren revised Hamm’s script shortly before filming commenced.
14. The ending was another source of many last-minute revisions. Originally, the climax revolved around an enraged Batman attacking Joker after the death of Vicki Vale.
Warner Bros.
15. “Batman” became the highest-grossing DC Comics movie of all time and wasn’t unseated until 2008’s “The Dark Knight.”
Jack Nicholson‘s grandson Duke Nicholson, who bears more than a passing resemblance to his Oscar-winning granddad, will make his acting debut in Jordan Peele‘s “Us.”
Duke previously appeared as iconic literary character Holden Caulfield in the 2016 Dandy Warhol video “Catcher in the Rye.”
For comparison, here’s Jack in his film debut, 1958’s “The Cry-Baby Killer.”
