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Weinstein Co. Teams With Bryan Cranston?, Kevin Hart For ‘The Intouchables’ Remake

By Ny MaGee
Published on: 14:24 PST, Mar 31, 2016

Bryan Cranston and Kevin Hart are set to star in a remake of the Weinstein’s 2011 hit film The Intouchables, according to THR. Olivier Nakache and Eric Toledano’s comic drama grossed a cute $10 million in the United States, but it was a massive hit in France and Germany in particular, earning $416 million at the overseas box office. The film is based on the true story about wealthy aristocrat Philippe Pozzo di Borgo and his Arabic ex-con caretaker, Abdel Sellou.

My Week With Marilyn director Simon Curtis is on board to helm the film, according to Variety. The original film starred François Cluzet as a wealthy aristocrat who hires a recently paroled young black man (Omar Sy) from the projects to be his caretaker after becoming a paraplegic following a paragliding accident. During a 2012 chat with the Telegraph, Philippe said he interviewed about 90 people and knew as soon as he met Abdel that “This is the guy I need. I don’t give a damn that he is out of jail. I needed him. And he became a friend afterwards.”

Philippe, who speaks fluent English, also explained that the reason why The Intouchables was such a hit is because it made it okay to laugh with, not at, disabled people. Check out the trailer to the original film below.

“This film says it is OK to laugh sometimes. Life in a wheelchair can be funny as well as sad. I think many people find disability frightening, but we want people to relax around us, because we feel much better if you take it easy. And this guy Abdel has such humour. Never nasty, just funny. I like laughing.”

The Intouchables was released by the Weinstein Co. and they quickly acquired the remake rights and hired Paul Feig (Ghostbusters) to pen the script. Hart’s involvement with the project was announced in 2014, with Colin Firth attached to co-star. Reportedly, he beat out Chris Rock, Idris Elba, and Academy Award winner Jamie Foxx for the role. Kevin released Ride Along 2, the sequel to his hit 2014 comedy with Ice Cube, earlier this year. Up next, he co-stars in Central Intelligence with Dwayne Johnson, which releases June 17.

Lionsgate has also announced their partnership with Kevin, which will see the two create a “new social adventure mobile tablet game” and “a video-on-demand service” titled Laugh Out Loud, which is aimed at showcasing emerging comedians and content curated by Hart.

Cranston is famously known for portraying Walter White in the hit AMC crime drama series Breaking Bad, for which he won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series four times, including three historic consecutive wins. As a producer of the series, he also won the award for Outstanding Drama Series twice. His role in Breaking Bad also earned a Golden Globe, four Screen Actors Guild Awards, and four Satellite Awards.

Bryan was also nominated three times for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series for his role in Malcolm in the Middle. For the 2015 film Trumbo, he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor. He can be seen next in the HBO telepic All the Way, in which he portrays Lyndon B. Johnson. He’s currently filming Why Him? opposite James Franco for Fox.

Meanwhile, Comedy Central is set to launch two new Kevin Hart series, with the first being an eight-episode show titled Kevin Hart Presents: Hart of the City. The show will follow the comedian as he travels the country to check out the local comedy scenes. The second series doesn’t have a title but the network has announced that it’s a half-hour stand-up special that spotlights up-and-coming comedians.

The Intouchables is high priority for the Weinstein Co., with shooting expected to start this summer.

[Images courtesy Dan Steinberg/Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP]

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