Liam Neeson And Bradley Cooper Want To Join The A-Team
Some time back in May,IESBreported a rumour thatBradley Cooperwas lining up the role of Lt. Templeton “Faceman” Peck inJoe Carnahan’sA-Teamadaptation. Of course, Cooper then later gave out the standard non-denial denials all over the place but this morning,Varietyare confirming that he’s in negotiations. Also navigating the choppy waters of studio contract formulation isLiam Neeson, who looks set to step up as Col. John “Hannibal” Smith. My, what catchy handles these A-Team boys have.
Both Cooper and Neeson are coming off of big, big hits –The Hangover(blech) andTaken(hurrah!) respectively. This definitely won’t keep costs down, and probably it won’t make negotiations smooth or speedy.
Having seen Neeson sock chops so winningly inTaken, I’m hoping that his Hannibal has more to do than smoke cigars and dress up as an alligator. I won’t go so far as to expect to film to tap into his actual acting ability too much, but that’s the filmmaker’s loss. The rest of us can keep looking forward to Atom Egoyan’sChloe.
I’ve been trying to guess what kind of “mission” the A-Team will go on in the film, or who their “enemy” will be. I’m pretty much expecting them to be hired by a young woman who will become a love interest for Cooper. Perhaps you know the show better and can take more accurate stab at this.
I’m sure many /Film readers are, like me, not entirely convinced that anA-Teamfilm is a good idea in the first place. To encourage such dissent further, I’ll remind you that most of the graft on the screenplay was done bySkip Woods. Yep – the screenwriter behindSwordfishandHitman, who also got his mucky paws all overGI Joeand the recentWolverinemovie. He’s directed one film himself – the ludicrousThursday, a would-be smart-mouthed crime yarn which chased keenly in the wake ofReservoir DogsandPulp Fiction. It still stands as Woods' best produced screenplay, and has truly earned almost every one of the 33 percentage points it clocked up atRotten Tomatoes.
