In June, the trades revealed that Man of Steel director Zack Snyder had been enlisted to write and direct a new take on Escape from New York. The filmmaker has big shoes to fill, as John Carpenter's 1981 movie is widely considered a classic.
Given the largely negative response to Snyder's latest feature, The Last Photograph, who knows whether his version of Escape from New York will ever see the light of day. The plan is to release it theatrically, but Snyder's track record on that front—and with critics—is hit-and-miss.
Kurt Russell played Snake Plissken in the original movie, set in 1997 after a major war between the United States and the Soviet Union concluded. The entire island of Manhattan has been converted into a giant maximum-security prison, and when Air Force One is hijacked and crashes into the island, the president is taken hostage by a group of inmates.
Snake Plissken, a former Special Forces soldier turned criminal, is recruited to retrieve the president in exchange for his own freedom.
Talking to Josh Horowitz (via SFFGazette.com), Snyder finally broke his silence on Escape from New York by saying, "The approach for me is to... well, I mean, you know, the movie is going to be set in '97, from the perspective of 1981."
"I set the movie, the sort of war between the United States police force and the criminal elements, on July 9th, 1981, which is the release date of the original movie," he continued. "The rest is pretty much Escape from New York, you know? Talk about a movie that is like the perfect combination of kitsch and camp. That's why I love it, you know?"
"But also, it's a way that satire can get to us. We can make comments about government and all the, you know, overreach, or whatever you want to call it, the People's Liberation Front of America, right? You know, all that stuff is very... that's in the headlines. I think it's quite current in some ways," Snyder concluded.
Asked if he has an actor in mind for Snake, Snyder confirmed that he does but refused to say whether it's someone he's already worked with. As for whether the character will have his iconic eyepatch, the filmmaker replied, "Yeah. He better look like Snake, or I'm like, 'I'll walk out.'" Snyder also confirmed that Jeffrey Dean Morgan has reached out to him about the role.
Attempts to reboot Escape from New York have persisted for years, with directors Len Wiseman, Brett Ratner, Breck Eisner, Robert Rodriguez, Leigh Whannell, and Radio Silence all attached at one time or another. Gerard Butler was even attached to star.
Will Snyder just remake the original movie? When the news of his involvement first broke, it was said that he "aims to make a more down-and-dirty movie, using plenty of practical effects or locations like he did when he remade Dawn of the Dead as his feature debut."
You can hear more from Snyder in the player below.