‘Highlander’: Ryan Reynolds Backs Out Of Remake
Ryan Reynolds has backed out of the remake of Highlander.
Highlander started as a classic when Christopher Lambert and Sean Connery took starring roles as immortals who could only die when you removed their heads from their bodies. The film took on the idea that immortals were driven to eliminate the rest in a never ending quest to fulfill their destiny of being the only one left, gaining the knowledge of a god.
Hence the timeless catch phrase, “There can be only one.”
The second film was the first to contradict the idea the first film had laid down, by introducing Micheal Ironside as another immortal, only this time they were supposedly a race of aliens sent to Earth to fight for their superiority. Then came Mario Van Peebles, and the story grew more and more ridiculous and contradictory as even Christopher Lambert’s Connor MacLeod fell to a successor in a cheap attempt to tie in with the TV series.
It was inevitable in this era of reboots and remakes that Highlander would get a reboot and help new audiences forget the silliness that the previous Highlander films had resorted to. They tried to cast Ryan Reynolds of X-Men Origins: Wolverine and Green Lantern fame (or infamy) in the role as the new Connor MacLeod and even had him confirmed at one point.
However, Ryan Reynolds has backed out of the Highlander remake. Rumors have pointed to the departure of director Juan Carlos Fresnadillo as the reason for Ryan Reynolds doing likewise.
There can be only one: Ryan Reynolds drops “Highlander” http://t.co/4dRpbp9ygP
— HuffPostEnt (@HuffPostEnt) June 18, 2013
Ryan Reynolds may also have used the excuse that he’s extremely busy with new projects, among which are the comic book adaptation of R.I.P.D. and the Dreamworks animated feature Turbo, and he’s about to begin shooting Selfless for director Tarsem Singh. Of course, compared with such peers as Bruce Willis and Danny Trejo, Ryan Reynolds can’t really use that excuse. Both of the former had been in almost everything in 2011 and 2012.
Of course, the possibility that it might not happen shouldn’t deter Highlander remake hopefuls, as the original Iron Man almost didn’t happen either. You know how that turned out.
What do you think of Ryan Reynolds backing out of the Highlander remake?
[image via Shutterstock]
