Bryan Cranston Cast As ‘Total Recall’ Villain; Basic Plot Revealed
What will it take to make theTotal Recallremake look like a good idea? CastingColin Farrellin the lead is a good move, while hiringLen Wiseman(Underworld,Live Free or Die Hard) to direct doesn’t inspire quite the same good will. We’ve known little else about the film, but nowBryan Cranston(Breaking Bad,Drive) is in negotiations to play the film’s bad guy.
Thanks to new reports, we finally know a bit more about the film.Kurt Wimmerwrote this version of the film based onPhilip K. Dick’s 1966 short storyWe Can Remember it for You Wholesale, and it sounds like he’s making some big changes.
Werecently heardthatKate Bosworth,Diane Kruger,Eva Mendes, Paula Patton, Jessica BielandEva Greenwere in consideration for the two main female roles,Lori and Melinda, and that report made it sound like they were more or less the same roles as in the Paul Verhoeven version. That suggested this might really be a direct remake of the film, rather than a re-adaptation of the short story. But Bryan Cranston isn’t playing the Michael Ironside character, Richter.
THRsays he is Vilos Cohaagen, leader of a nation state called Euromerica. The report offers this synopsis, which seems to cut out Mars altogether and push the new film away from both the short story and existing movie:
Almost sounds like there’s some1984stuff going on there, with the dual warring nation states. Interesting take. WhenTotal Recallfirst came into being it was after years of development and several different screenwriters and directors. As is so often the case with films based on PKD stories, the end result was significantly different from the original story in several ways, though screenwriters Ronald Shusett, Dan O’Bannon and Gary Goldman and director Paul Verhoeven managed to keep some of the spirit of the story alive.
Though I do like Colin Farrell and Bryan Cranston enough to be interested in this, it still seems like a wild card. Paul Verhoeven is hardly a subtle director, but he is known for having a real facility with satire. He can take what looks like a standard big-budget action affair and give it depth. Len Wiseman is more of a flashy mainstream action guy — depth and subtlety are not among his strengths. This casting suggests that the producers are pushing for something more than a glossy, routine story, and the plot description supports that idea. What do you think? Can Len Wiseman expand his range and make this work? [Varietyfirst broke the casting news.]
