Joe Carnahan is set to direct the remake of ‘The Raid’.
The 47-year-old producer – who worked at the helm of 2011 movie ‘The Grey’ and 2006’s ‘Smoking Aces’ – will return to the director’s chair this year when he teams up with Frank Grillo for the "re-imagination" of the martial arts action survival film.
But, although he’s excited about his forthcoming project, Carnahan has big shoes to fill as bosses are planning to put an American spin on the foreign original.
However, he already stands in good stead as Gareth Evans – who directed the original six years ago – has given him his blessing to tinker around with it.
Carnahan tweeted: "THE RAID remake will hew closer in tone & feel to THE GREY and NARC.@Ghuevans is producing alongside & has given us his full blessing. It’s not a remake. It’s a reimagining of the same scenario. Everybody take a deep breath. We won’t disappoint you, rabid-fanboy-from-Hell" (sic).
And whilst some fans might be worried that the film will be a flop considering the success of the first, Carnahan has stressed that it will be something "special."
He explained: "You can’t remake The Raid, guys. It’s a fantastic film. So, ask yourselves why would we be doing it, unless we had something really special. Frank Grillo and I are going to sit down with @colliderfrosty this week, do an in-depth and then all your fears will be allayed #theraid" (sic).
The project, which has been in the pipeline for many years, was cancelled in 2015 after Screen Gems, ‘The Expendables 3’ director Patrick Hughes and potential star Taylor Kitsch all dropped out as the studio struggled to get more talent on board.