“Outland” came out well before my time, but I do recall seeing bits and pieces of it here and here, though never the whole movie. It starred Sean Connery, and was apparently a sci-fi version of the Western classic “High Noon”, which I liked. Warner Bros. is now set to remake “Outland”, presumably without Sean Connery anywhere near it, since he’s, well, prety old and all.
According to THR, the 1981 “Outland” will be remade by Warner Bros., with Chad St. John writing the script and Michael Davis behind the camera. If the name doesn’t sound familiar, Davis’ last movie was the Clive Owen-starrer “Shoot’em Up”, a balls-to-the-walls (and completely cartoony) action movie that, while it got fanboys excited, really didn’t do a whole lot of business at the box office.
More on the difference between the original and the remake:
The original, which drew comparisons to “High Noon,” starred Sean Connery as a marshal on one of Jupiter’s moons who is investigating mysterious deaths. He’s forced to take on the colony’s corporate administrators alone when the rest of the colonists refuse to help. It was written and directed by Peter Hyams.
The new take expands the concept, making it tentpole-sized, while keeping the original’s theme. The story takes place in an orbiting city around the moon, where a cop uncovers a murderous conspiracy endangering the entire city. With a week before his retirement back to Earth, our hero has to choose between walking away with his wife, or taking on a private army with his overachieving ex-partner and wife’s former boyfriend.
Lynn Harris and Jesse Ehrman will keep an eye on the production for Warner Bros., while Oliver Kramer of Hollywood Gang produces.
Fire-breathing shotguns in space? Sure, why not.
