Henry Cavill's long-gestating Highlander remake delays are being explained by director Chad Stahelski. Stahelski is known for the John Wick franchise, with Highlander looking to be one of his first forays out of the Keanu Reeves starring action series. The original 1986 film starred Christopher Lambert, with Cavill eyed for an undisclosed lead role in the reboot. Highlander proved successful, spawning several sequels and a TV series that ran for six seasons.
While speaking with Deadline, Stahelski was asked about his Highlander remake, with the director elaborating on the film's delay. With the rich mythology surrounding Highlander, the director feels it takes time to get things right, not wanting to diminish the overall quality of the story while also meeting expectations. Check out Stahelski's comments on Highlander below:
I’ve worked on Highlander for years now, for Henry Cavill. Being retroactive is hard. What’s different between Wick and that? With Wick, you weren’t serving seven seasons of TV plus two spinoffs plus five films. If I were to do a remake of Highlander right now, you’d expect a lot of mythology in those first two hours; you couldn’t explore stuff without it. Now, Highlander as a TV show now would be amazing. You’d have time to build it out, see all those flashbacks and the potential of it. It’s trickier when you’re trying to do something with that big of a mythology. But I agree, that would be one to take a really big stab at. Here, we just had the opportunity to really learn as we went on with Wick.
Why Henry Cavill's Highlander Will Be Worth The Wait
Highlander has already proven successful, having spawned a franchise with its own recognizable catchphrase, "There can be only one." Still, as the film series went on, many found it repetitive and lackluster, eventually leaving the franchise dormant. However, with Cavill's involvement in Highlander, the franchise could get a new lease on life.
Cavill is a self-proclaimed nerd who often loves the games and comics his characters originate from. He's recognizable as Superman and further proved his affinity for adapting characters as Geralt of Rivia on Netflix's The Witcher. So while Stahelski has concerns over the abundance of lore in Highlander, Cavill is the type to also take the franchise's background into account, aiming to make the best film they can for those that enjoy the series.
Beyond the focus on properly including Highlander's mythology, it's also an action franchise built around immortals battling each other for supremacy. With Stahelski at the helm, the film is bound to deliver on the action as well, with all four John Wick films repeatedly proving that he understands action in many forms, with Wick utilizing all manner of weapons. Cavill's Highlander may wield a sword more than John Wick, but Stahelski can deliver what is expected from the franchise. So while Highlander may be taking longer than some may like to finally get underway, it shows a lot of promise from those involved.
Source: Deadline