Credit: Variety
After a recent resurgence with sequels Rocky Balboa and the upcoming Rambo, Sylvester Stallone is taking aim at an MGM remake of the 1974 Charles Bronson starrer Death Wish.
Stallone is in talks to direct and star as an ordinary man who goes vigilante after his wife and daughter are attacked. Set to write the script are Michael Ferris and John Brancato, whose credits include Terminator 3 and Terminator Salvation: The Future Begins.
Paramount Pictures controls some Death Wish rights and has an option to partner. MGM will make the pic whether or not Par opts in, and if a writers strike is settled in short order, MGM will try to start production before March. Stallone’s partner, Kevin King, will be a producer.
Stallone showed surprising box office punch with Rocky Balboa, which grossed $80 million domestic and $150 million worldwide. MGM distributed that film after splitting the $24 million production budget with Sony and Revolution Studios.
Death Wish fits squarely into MGM’s long-term strategy of assembling tentpoles based on a 4,100-title library that encompasses post-1985 MGM fare plus UA, Orion, Polygram, Samuel Goldwyn and Cannon titles.
“We are looking at our library to determine which potential franchise properties make the most sense for us to produce, and Death Wish was clearly one of that jumped out,” said MGM chief operating officer Rick Sands. “We hope to get a deal done with Sylvester Stallone to direct and star, and like the Rocky and Rambo films, we see this as another potential franchise for him.”
