In a normal year, we would have already seen Ryan Reynolds and Shawn Levy‘s comedy Free Guy, about an man discovering he’s a non-playable character in a Grand Theft Auto-esque world. But the coronavirus pandemic put a delay to that. However, Reynolds and Levy haven’t let that get them down, as they’ve developed another movie together, and Netflix has picked it up.
Originally titled Our Name Is Adam, the project was initially developed as a starring vehicle for Tom Cruise. Now Reynolds will star as a man who must travel back in time to get help from his 13-year-old self. Together, they encounter their late father, now the same age as Reynolds’ character.
Skydance was developing the film as a part of their agreement with Paramount, who Netflix purchased the film from. It is hoped that production will star in Vancouver in November, a month before Free Guy is now slated to hit cinemas.
Jonathan Tropper (This Is Where I Leave You) wrote the most recent draft of the script. Previous writers include T.S. Nowlin and the team of Mark Levin and Jennifer Flackett.
Both Reynolds and Levy already have a relationship with Netflix, so this move makes sense. Reynolds starred in Michael Bay‘s Six Underground last year, while Levy produces Stranger Things.
Skydance also produced both Six Underground and recent Charlize Theron vehicle, The Old Guard, both of which are among Netflix’s most watched original movies.
Free Guy and this time travel movie probably won’t be that similar, but we’ll still have to wait until December to see what the Reynolds-Levy collaboration looks like.
This is a smart acquisition by Netflix though. Reynolds is a bankable star, and the time travel premise sounds like an intriguing one. Expect the previously-titled Our Name Is Adam to probably find itself among Netflix’s most watched Originals when it eventually arrives.
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