Summit takes on 'Highlander' redo
Posted: Mon May 26, 2008 8:56 pm
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/con ... 46721ae9c0
Who says there can be only one?
Summit Entertainment is bringing back to the big screen the 1986 sci-fi cult hit "Highlander," with "Iron Man" co-writers Art Marcum and Matt Holloway on board to write the script.
The original "Highlander" starred Christopher Lambert, Sean Connery and Clancy Brown as immortal beings battling humans, hunting down one another and collecting more power. Lambert played Scottish swordsman Connor MacLeod, Connery portrayed an Egyptian and Clancy was a barbarian known as the Kurgan. The film -- with its "There can be only one" catch phrase -- spawned four sequels and three television series.
Summit acquired the rights to remake the cult classic from Davis/Panzer Prods. Peter Davis, one of the original producers of the 1986 film, also will produce the new film.
Davis said the new "Highlander" will not just be a remake but will incorporate more backstory elements and prequel aspects that will be fleshed out to expand the story line in a way that is inventive yet faithful to the original story.
He also said romance was key to the series' popularity and would be a central theme in the new film.
"I would hate to think that people viewed 'Highlander' as a sword fighting movie because it's much more than that," he said. "The issues of an immortal falling in love with a woman and knowing she's going to grow old and die in your arms, those are very romantic issues to deal with."
By acquiring the rights to the property, Summit gains a recognizable brand and a franchise with worldwide popularity.
Summit's president of production Erik Feig, along with the company's senior vp production Geoff Shaevitz and creative executive Gillian Bohrer, will oversee the project for the studio.
Marcum and Holloway, repped by ICM, also penned "Convoy," which is set up at Paramount.
