Amazon Prime Just Hit Go On One Of The '80s Reboots We've Been Waiting For
We're now well over 40 years since the beginning of the '80s, a period of pop-cultural significance that continues to resonate with people to this day. In the intervening decades, we've plumbed much of the '80s' cinematic depths for a seemingly endless barrage of remakes, reboots, and revivals. In fact, there have been so many remakes that we've even constructed a list of the worst movie remakes of all time. Notably, that list doesn't seem to be slowing down the Hollywood redo train much at all.
A recent announcement from Amazon Prime reveals that a decade-defining film of the '80s is about to receive the reboot treatment for a second time. Will this be a new classic on par with the original film, or more slag for the large pile of forgotten remakes to have come out over the years, hopeless to stand out from the shadows of their respective source material? Time will tell, but in the meantime fans will certainly have plenty to look forward to with either anticipation or dread, depending on their attitude towards remakes.
Road House 2.0 will star Jake Gyllenhaal as Dalton
The film in question is "Road House," the 1989 action classic starring Patrick Swayze as James Dalton, who finds himself handling security at a bar in the middle of rural Missouri. Confirming previous reports of a "Road House" reboot, Jake Gyllenhaal will reportedly step into the role made famous by Swayze. However, as per usual remake rules, the new film will also feature a number of plot changes.
In the new version, Dalton will be a former UFC fighter who takes a security job that ends up being much more than it seems (via Variety). Another change made to the original movie is its setting, which will swap out Jasper, Missouri, for the Florida Keys. Joel Silver, who produced the original film, will also take part in the latest entry in the franchise. Doug Liman, best known for helming action films like "The Bourne Identity" and "Mr. & Mrs. Smith," is set to direct.
Joining Gyllenhaal in the cast are Billy Magnussen, Daniela Melchior, Gbemisola Ikumelo, Lukas Gage, and more. No release date for the new "Road House" has been set, but the project is expected to begin production sometime this month, so it will only be a matter of time before you can see how the new crew matches up next to Swayze, Kelly Lynch, Sam Elliott, Ben Gazzara, and the rest of the people who made the original movie such a beloved action classic.
"Road House 2: Last Call", the last entry in the "Road House" franchise, was released directly to DVD in 2006 and followed the son of Swayze's character from the original. According to Rotten Tomatoes, it received overwhelmingly negative reviews from critics and general audiences alike.