We know that Doug Liman is boycotting the premiere of his upcoming “Road House” remake, starring Jake Gyllenhaal, and set to stream, on Prime Video, March 21st. You can read his full op-ed here.
We also know that Liman believes it might be the best film of his career, and that’s quite the assertion on his part given that he’s directed some fairly strong films over the years — “The Bourne Identity,” “Edge of Tomorrow,” “Swingers,” “Go,” “American Made.”
It most likely seems to be hyperbole on the part of Liman, who is currently pissed off that Amazon/MGM has decided to give “Road House” a straight-to-streaming release. However, the just-released trailer makes it look kind of … fun. The fight scenes look great. Gyllenhaal seems to be having a ball with his role. I’m kinda looking forward to this one.
“Road House” was the highest-testing film of Liman’s career. I can see why. It looks like a total crowd-pleaser, and I’ve always trusted Liman’s instincts as a filmmaker.
This remake of the 1989 film sees Gyllenhaal playing a former UFC fighter who ends up working security in a shady Florida bar. It’s set to have its world premiere at the SXSW Film Festival in March and, as mentioned, has a March 21 debut set up on Prime.
Note: the original 1989 “Road House,” starring Patrick Swayze, is a total guilty pleasure. It was destroyed by critics upon release, but has found a decent cult following over the last few decades — decent enough that Liman decided to remake it.
Edward Berger seems to have settled on what comes next. His Lance Armstrong biopic, starring Austin Butler, is now holding casting calls, with production eyed for January.