Back in June, Hugh Laurie entered negotiations to play the villainous CEO of Omni Corp in MGM and José Padilha’s RoboCop remake. He’s now left the project, but we have a hint of who MGM wants instead.
Variety‘s Jeff Sneider tweeted the news, stressing that Laurie had never finalized his deal. “While he was never officially confirmed, sources telling Variety that Hugh Laurie has ended talks to play villain in RoboCop,” Sneider wrote. “Hugh Laurie definitely out of RoboCop reboot, not that he was ever ‘in.’” [/film]
Deadline reports MGM has already contacted other actors for the role, including Clive Owen, who would also be awesome. They’ll need to find a replacement quickly, as shooting will start in Toronto soon for a planned release date of August 9th, 2013.
Still presumably signed on for roles in RoboCop are Joel Kinnaman as the titular future of policing, as well as Gary Oldman, Samuel L. Jackson, Abbie Cornish, Michael K. Williams, Jackie Earle Haley, Jay Baruchel, Jennifer Ehle, Marianne Jean-Baptiste, and everyone else ever (except Hugh Laurie).
We will miss being able to use the photoshop above for future RoboCop posts. Godspeed, bumper car House photoshop. *tips a 40 of Nuke while listening to Bone Thugs-N-Harmony’s “Crossroads”*