Who wants to lay some money down on the theory that since Warner Bros. can’t seem to get much of a handle on their own superhero franchises (although definitely looking forward to checking out Ryan Reynolds as GL), that somebody at the studio thought it might be good for shits and giggles to take a swipe at the Avengers franchise that Marvel is oh-so-carefully crafting? That’s the best reason I can think of why they’d greenlight a project titled Vegas Avengers.
The action pic from writer Soo Hugh tells the story of a hot shot pilot who, after taking
too many risks, is forced to enter a top-secret program that flies
experimental, unmanned planes. Much of the action takes place at
Nellis Air Force base just outside Las Vegas.
Those familiar with the project, which is based on Peter Godwin’s
Men’s Journal article of the same name, have said it contains
echoes of Top Gun. Producer Kevin Misher is adding this to his slate, which includes the planned Dune remake, while scribe Hugh gained notice by having her script Deadline appear on Hollywood’s fabled Black List, which is a gathering of the best unproduced scripts in Hollywood.
Now this project could end up being just fine, but don’t be surprised to see a cease-and-desist order fall upon this thing like an uru hammer. Still it could spur on an entire new subgenre of pics such as Portland Defenders, Seattle X-Men or the can’t miss prospect of Albuquerque Strikeforce Morituri. Of course, Champions of Los Angeles was already taken.