Real Steel director Shawn Levy gives a filming update on the recently announced Disney+ show, which is in the process of meeting with writers. Inspired by Richard Matheson’s short story "Steel," the 2011 film takes place in a version of 2020, following a washed-up fighter, Charlie Kenton (High Jackman), and his estranged son (Dakota Goyo) as they try to build a new robot to compete in the World Robot Boxing championship. In addition to Jackman and Goyo, Real Steel stars Evangeline Lilly, Anthony Mackie, Hope Davis, James Rebhorn, and Kevin Durand.
Despite some mixed reviews from critics, Real Steel was praised for its action, visual effects, performances, and world—which could easily facilitate future installments and/spin-offs. The science-fiction sports drama grossed nearly $300 million at the worldwide box office and received an Academy Award Nomination for Best Visual Effects. Last month, it was reported that Disney+ was developing a series based on Real Steel with the original director on board to produce. Levy has since said that the show is a byproduct of fandom’s demand for a follow-up even after all these years.
During a recent interview with Collider promoting Ryan Reynolds and Levy’s upcoming Netflix movie, The Adam Project, the director gave an update on the Real Steel series. According to Levy, he and the other producers have been fielding calls from agents of interested writers since the news broke that Disney+ was developing a series. However, meeting with writers and hearing pitches is a far cry from starting production. Read the full quote below:
“It can't be filming this year,” said Levy. “We have now a had several actual writer pitch meetings. We are narrowing down the search and the ideas behind the take. There's a lot of different ways to go. It's a little bit daunting because a lot of those ways are valid and cool. And which one is the right one? I'll go back to something I said in our Adam Project interview. I'm just going to have to go with my gut about what is the right one, because there is no objective arbiter of right and wrong. I don't think we're going to, no. Because even once we pick our writer, we're then opening a room, we're breaking a whole season of television. So it's more of a process. But we are definitely making good headway now. And the way the news broke and took off has been a big boon to the writer search.”
Real Steel has cultivated a cult following since its release over a decade ago, which has become abundantly clear since the announcement of a series. Levy went on to talk about this level of interest and how surprised he was the story got so much traction on Twitter and sites like this one, saying "Oh, wow. The love is still there. The interest is still there. Now I just got to tell the right story in the right way." Levy has been wanting to make a sequel to Real Steel for quite some time. He’s even expressed a desire to reunite X-Men frenemies Jackman and Reynolds for a potential Real Steel 2, an idea that has more than excited fans. That being said, it’s unclear whether the series will feature any returning characters.
It remains to be seen whether Disney+’s series will be a sequel, prequel, reboot, or merely take place in the world of Real Steel. It’s likely Levy doesn’t even know at this point. Given the ever-busy schedules of Jackman and Reynolds, audiences shouldn’t expect either to lead the series. However, there’s no ruling out cameos by them or other stars like Lilly, Mackie, or Goyo. With Free Guy and The Adam Project, Levy is proving to be at the height of his creative prowess. Even though he isn’t directing or producing (yet), it will be interesting to see what becomes of the show. Until then, audiences can stream the original on HBO Max.
Source: Collider