Some genre filmmakers don’t survive their first studio-financed bomb; Neil Marshall, on the other hand, just followed up the resounding rejection of Doomsday with his second studio greenlight in as many weeks.
Last week brought news of the western/H.P. Lovecraft hybrid Sacrilege, but that film may have to wait if the proposed star of Marshall’s new project, an adaptation of James Sallis’s noir-ish thriller Drive, is ready to get in gear (‘cuz it’s about cars and stuff!) after he’s finished with Wolverine. Marshall may be booking work like a reduced-budget Ridley Scott at the moment, but it’s not like he can tell Hugh Jackman to work around his schedule; besides, Universal’s probably a tad more bullish on a no-nonsense car chase movie than Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Cthulhu.
Much as I’d love to see the Great Old One roping steer and shooting up a saloon, I’m totally cool with Marshall expanding on the final portion of Doomsday. In fact, if he’s just going to be paying homage to his favorite directors for the rest of his career, it sounds like Drive could be the perfect Walter Hill tribute. The premise concerns “a Hollywood stunt driver who moonlights as a getaway car driver in heists”; futz with that plot a little, and you’ve got a remake of The Driver on your hands. Hell, even if you don’t do a straight-up remake, it’d still be a nice gesture to give Ryan O’Neal a cameo.
I’m not familiar with Sallis’s work, but I’m sure CHUD’s resident mystery maven, Cameron Hughes, has devoured the author’s work. Anyone else read this guy?
According to Marshall, he hopes to be shooting Drive this summer.