Jeff Wells is reporting that his sources tell him that Josh Brolin is signing on as Jonah Hex in the big screen movie based on the DC Comics western hero to be directed by Neveldine & Taylor, the madmen behind Crank. Brolin’s people told Wells that the story wasn’t true, but he’s still hearing that the deal is done.
I immediately ran to Google because I had heard this story before, but I can’t find it anywhere on the web. That may mean I heard it in an ‘off the record’ conversation, but while I can’t remember who told it to me, I do remember that I heard it some time ago.
Brolin would be pretty terrific in the role, and this would be the kind of franchise that a guy at his age could ride for a good long while, assuming it connects with audiences (and considering that the film is a supernatural sci-fi western, that’s a big assumption). And with his career resurgance over the last few years, a franchise is just what he’s looking for.
But is it true? I’ll check around, but am not convinced I’ll get any answers. Either what I heard about Brolin being interested and being courted a long time ago is true, or Wells is getting old news that is already outdated.