Gut reactions to the forthcoming remake of 1980s cult classic Road House should be annoyance, anger, even disgust - but something about this project feels too perfect to hate. Some remember Patrick Swayze for throwing around Baby, but just as many know him for throwing around drunken thugs in Road House. Now it's Jake Gyllenhaal's turn, as the modern Road House remake is rapidly gathering steam. Officially announced as an Amazon exclusive following the company's acquisition of MGM, shooting will reportedly begin soon, with UFC fighter Conor McGregor now among the cast.
Dripping in the easy charm of 1980s action cinema, but also injecting massive amounts of heart and romance, Road House has aged surprisingly well, its popularity increasing through the decades after a shaky start. Now embedded into the tapestry of its era as deeply as Bon Jovi and shoulder pads, Road House has developed an aura of being untouchable, and any attempt to recapture that magic should be dismissed as a cynical nostalgia cash-in that'll devalue the original. Hollywood doesn't exactly have a strong track record in remaking 1980s classics either, with The Karate Kid, Fame and Red Dawn (Swayze again!) all hitting the ground harder than one of James Dalton's rowdy victims.
Given a long history of bad remakes, the original's cult status, and Dalton's unshakable presence within the 1980s zeitgeist, a modern-day Road House movie is surely something that should not be. Not as sacrilegious as attempting to remake Back To The Future or Die Hard, maybe, but close in terms of expecting to capture the same lightning inside a brand new bottle. If heads are skeptical of Amazon's upcoming Road House remake, however, hearts have a very different reaction. Looking at the concept behind the new Road House, the people involved, and the story details already revealed, another feisty visit to Double Deuce looks just too perfect to hate.
Road House Could Be A Genuinely Great Remake
The most obvious reason for Road House optimism is the list of names involved both onscreen and behind camera. Patrick Swayze's shoes are impossible to fill, this much we know, but Jake Gyllenhaal is inspired casting nonetheless. Southpaw proves Gyllenhaal's credibility as a physical presence, but his range encompasses all the tenderness, stoicism and, indeed, comedy necessary to inherit Swayze's mantle. Conor McGregor then adds a legitimacy to the Road House remake's combat credentials, staking a claim as a genuinely hard-hitting retelling, while Daniela Melchior was arguably the highlight of 2021's The Suicide Squad. With a blend of established talent, genuine athletes and promising new stars, Road House is packed with the right people.
That promise extends behind-the-scenes too. Joel Silver - producer of the original Road House - is behind the remake, drawing a line of continuity between past and present that should avoid the usual remake pitfall of misunderstanding the source material. On director duties is respected action filmmaker Doug Liman, best known for The Bourne Identity and Edge of Tomorrow. Liman's presence once again bolsters the credibility of Amazon's Road House remake, promising the same blend of intense fight scenes and narrative intrigue that made the first ride so enjoyable.
Devolving into an outright nostalgia-fest is a trap Jake Gyllenhaal's Road House must avoid at all costs, but early signs already suggest that won't happen. According to an official synopsis, the remake's protagonist will be a UFC fighter-turned-bouncer who begins uncovering dirty secrets in his local community. While close enough to the core of Swayze's Road House, the UFC angle gives a modern gloss that could strike that elusive, all-important balance between recapturing former glories and doing something fresh.