Michael Bay is teaming up with Gareth Evans and Patrick Hughes to make a remake of Indonesian action hit The Raid for Netflix. Evans created, wrote and directed the original 2012 film which quickly garnered acclaim for its impressive action sequences, leading to a sequel two years later.
But Evans won’t be handling directing duties this time around. He’ll executive produce with Bay and Hughes directing, with Hughes also co-writing the script alongside James Beaufort.
The original Raid follows an elite squad tasked with infiltrating a ruthless mobster’s den. The film builds suspense as the team traverses the levels of a high-rise building, facing off against the drug lord’s deadly underlings. It’s already inspired hit franchises like John Wick, so it makes sense that an actual remake is being put together.
The reboot of the film will take place in Philadelphia, where an elite DEA task force will take on a mysterious cartel kingpin as they fight their way through his tower of informants. The three filmmakers said in a statement:
“We’re incredibly excited about Patrick’s unique vision for this film. It’s a distinctly original take on the material, which promises to pay great respect to the original film while also bringing a fresh approach and perspective that will set its own course in the action genre.”
It was actually Sony who originally acquired the remake rights for The Raid way back in 2011, but the potential remake repeatedly stalled despite having names such as Chris Hemsworth and Frank Grillo interested.
Now with Netflix and their seemingly endless amounts of money at the helm, we should be able to see this thing sooner than later. And, regardless on how you feel about him, Bay is arguably one of the most important action directors of the last thirty years, so giving him the chance to remake a foreign classic should be an interesting experience.
There’s no news yet on casting for the film, but considering the highly skilled action sequences necessary to pull it off, we might be looking at a cast of relative unknowns.
#Peace.Love.TheRaid
