A few months ago, we found out that Brett Ratner would be wheezing Cheeto crumbs and leaving nacho cheese fingerprints all over the script for Hercules, with the lead role to be played by The Rock, in a “graphic-novel-based” film produced by Peter “JOIN THE ARMY, MOTHERF*CKER” Berg. Now, Renny Harlin, who directed Deep Blue Sea, Cutthroat Island, Die Hard 2, and a John Cena movie, and who was basically Michael Bay before Michael Bay was Michael Bay, has signed on for a competing project called “Hercules 3D,” which is totally gonna be supes different from that other Hercules movie, you guys. I mean, for one thing, I hear the 3D goes up to 11.
“It’s not a comic book, cartoony fantasy thing,” Harlin tells The Hollywood Reporter. “It’s closer to Gladiator than flying horses.”
On the subject of the competing Hercules project, Harlin says, “I think these are very different kinds of movies in their approach to this legendary character. Obviously, Hercules has been portrayed in many different films, such as the Disney animated movie. I wish them luck. Ancient Greek mythology is an endless source of good stories … Let’s see both movies be successful.”
Millennium has begun pre-production on the $70-million-budgeted film and expects to cast its eight leading roles in the next few weeks. The company is eyeing a May production start on its lot in Sofia, Bulgaria, and hopes to have the movie ready for a March 2014 release.
The aggressive schedule is squarely aimed to beat Paramount and MGM’s rival Hercules project, which is being directed by Brett Ratner and is to star Dwayne Johnson. That movie is set for an Aug. 8, 2014, release.
Renny Harlin’s movies are awesomely sh*tty, and Hercules is every dumb studio exec’s brilliant plan to capitalize on The 300 (at one point there were three separate Hercules movies in development, I’m not sure how many there are now). This seems like a match made in dumb movie heaven. There aren’t many people besides Renny Harlin who could ever dream of out-dumbing a Brett Ratner movie starring a pro wrestler. Paul WS Anderson, maybe. Anyway, this is great news for Jason Momoa. Stay near the phone, dude.