Universal Pictures is developing a remake of 1955 film The Night Of The Hunter. Producer Amy Pascal is spearheading the project, and has hired Operation Finale writer Matt Orton to pen the script. He will adapt David Grubb‘s 1953 novel the original film was based on, and update it for modern audiences.
Directed by Charles Laughton – his only directing credit – The Night Of tThe Hunter starred Robert Mitchum as Reverend Harry Powell, a misogynistic serial killer whose former cellmate took off with $10,000 following a bank robbery. The robber is executed, and when Powell gets out of jail, he sets out to find the man’s widow so he can steal the money from her and her young children, who know where it’s hidden.
The film quickly became a classic, and Mitchum’s performance and demeanour – complete with LOVE and HATE tattooed on his knuckles – has been widely praised. Obviously actors around the world will be lining up to put their own spin on the Powell character, and one imagines it will be easy for Pascal and Universal to secure a big name.
It’s an intriguing choice for a remake though. Nowadays, most remade films are pop culture classics designed for nostalgic dopamine rushes and multiple sequels. The Night Of The Hunter is not that, and is a far more adult drama filled to the brim with darkness.
Obviously Universal is not aiming to appeal to a mass audience with this one. But with what’s expected to be a smaller budget, that could allow Orton and whoever ends up directing to put their own spin on the material and really put their stamp on the film. Most remakes are big budgeted and pestered by studio interference since so much money is at stake, but that shouldn’t be the case here.
We’ll wait and see who signs on to direct and who is cast in the lead role, in what’s sure to be a project many in Hollywood would love to take a crack at.
#Peace.Love.NightOfTheHunter
