Arguably Indonesia’s greatest cinematic export of all time, it was only a matter of time before Hollywood tried to remake “The Raid”, given their penchant for trying to cash in on the success of foreign cinema hits.
“The Raid” has actually been on Hollywood executives’ radars for a while now, with the remake project announced and then delayed back in 2014. But now, production on the remake of the ass-kicking non-stop violent action flick seems to be on track.
Joe Carnahan, known for his directing work on “The A-Team” remake and “The Grey”, has signed on to write and direct “The Raid” remake. Frank Grillo, who featured in the last two “Captain America” movies as Brock Rumlow/Crossbones, will play the lead protagonist, who was played by Iko Uwais in the Indonesian original. (Fun fact: Grillo and Uwais are set to appear together in the alien invasion flick “Beyond Skyline”.)
Truth be told, we’re worried about how this remake will turn out, given that Hollywood’s record on foreign film remakes is spotty at best. The 2013 US remake of another ultra-violent cult Asian film, “Oldboy”, was piss poor compared to the South Korean original as well as a commercial flop.
And then there’s the question of Grillo. Sure, he’s a decent action star, but we’ve never seen him do anything that comes close to Iko Uwais’ level of badassery:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PBpxU_IhuGI
But perhaps the essence of the original “The Raid” will remain untouched, as XYZ Films, the studio funding the remake, told Deadline that they want to “pay homage to The Raid, not do a paint-by-numbers remake.” And perhaps there is reason to be optimistic about the remake as well, as Welshman Gareth Evans, who directed the original and its sequel, will executive produce the new take.
Not much else is currently known about the project, including details on production status and the movie’s release date.
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