Last year, we learned that a sequel to Michael Mann's acclaimed crime thriller, Heat, starring acting legends Al Pacino and Robert De Niro, was officially moving forward after finding a new home at United Artists, following Warner Bros.' agreement to allow Mann to shop the project around.
Reports soon followed that Christian Bale (The Dark Knight, American Hustle, Public Enemies) looked to reunite with Mann for the project, and Leonardo DiCaprio (Inception, One Battle After Another), who has been attached to the film for some time, was believed to be on board.
Now, The Wrap has confirmed that both actors are set to star (though their deals are not fully closed just yet), with Bale to play Vincent Hanna (Pacino's character in the original film), and DiCaprio as Chris Shiherlis (Val Kilmer's character).
The site has also learned that Adam Driver is being sought for the sadistic villain, Otis Wardell, and Stephen Graham is in talks to play Neil McCauley (De Niro's character). Several actresses are vying for the role of Chris' wife Sharlene, originated by Ashley Judd, while other A-list names are circling the project
If the movie sticks with the book's structure, we will follow these characters (aside from McCauley, obviously) before and after the events of the first film.
Mann spoke about casting the original movie's heavyweights, Pacino and De Niro, during a recent interview with The Guardian.
“It was an automatic ‘it’s a fantastic idea’. I mean, the two greatest actors of their generation! The intensity, the internal power that De Niro has and the exuberance, the ability for performance with which Al could imbue a character, because within the character of Hanna, there’s a certain burlesque he uses with informants to keep them off balance, because in real life all informants lie some of the time. So it’s a constant game to manage an informant, to keep him off balance, to get the information you want.”
The filmmaker also discussed the standout coffee shop scene, which marks the first time Hanna and McAuley meet.
"Both have lethal intent. What they don’t expect but do discover is the rapport when they start talking about their private lives and Hanna talks about a dream he has of dead bodies sitting around the table staring at him with eight-ball haemorrhages from gunshot wounds. Then De Niro asks: ‘What do they say?’ Al says, ‘Nothing.’ They don’t talk.
“Then De Niro expresses a dream about drowning, which basically translates into: does he have enough time for what he wants in life? It becomes very intimate – the intimacy of strangers. You don’t want to rehearse a scene like that. Everybody understands that the magic of one or two unique takes will happen and we all want that to happen spontaneously on camera, not in a rehearsal.”
Master criminal Neil McCauley (Robert De Niro) is trying to control the rogue actions of one of his men, while also planning one last big heist before retiring. Meanwhile, Lieutenant Hanna (Al Pacino) attempts to track down McCauley as he deals with the chaos in his own life, including the infidelity of his wife (Diane Venora) and the mental health of his stepdaughter (Natalie Portman). McCauley and Hanna discover a mutual respect, even as they try to thwart each other's plans.