News about a Parker movie project started dribbling out a couple of months ago. I dutifully sent it out over Twitter, but didn’t think much more about it–I’ve heard of a few Parker movie and TV projects over the years and they never seem to get out of development hell.
But it looks like this one might actually be happening. From Variety:
Jason Statham is in negotiations to star in the thriller “Parker” with Taylor Hackford directing for Sierra/Affinity, Incentive Filmed Entertainment and Sidney Kimmel Entertainment.
I got this tip from two readers, one of whom liked the choice of Statham and one of whom was far less enthused. I don’t really have an opinion because I don’t know that much about Jason Statham. He certainly looks the part, but the only flicks he’s been in that I’ve seen are Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels (which I loved) and Snatch (which I hated). However, I saw them both when they first came out and my memories have faded to the point that I don’t recall Statham’s parts very clearly.
Taylor Hackford has some fine work on his résumé, along with quite a few films I’ve never heard of.
One cause for concern is this:
Pic, based on the book series by Donald Westlake, revolves around a thief who, though at times is forced to be a killer, still lives by a code of honor that includes never stealing money from people who need it.
I realize the urge to give Parker some softer qualities is hard to resist, but if you’re going to do that, why not just make up some other thief? I hope this is simply a misunderstanding by the reporter.
This news has kindled some related thoughts that I hope to incorporate into a post and launch a discussion about later this week, but for now I’ll limit myself to simply talking about the movie project. It’s interesting that we aren’t told what book if any the movie is going to be based on. I’m assuming they’re not going to do The Hunter again. Are they going to use a book, or create an original Parker story? (Update: It’s now being reported that the new movie will also be based on The Hunter.)
With the understanding that this one may never get off the ground, and that we have very limited information at this point (three months ago, Brian De Palma was supposed to be directing), what do you think?
Statham would be a great Parker. Check him out in “The Bank Job”. That is one of the best heist movies I have seen in a long time, and it’s based on an actual robbery that involved some dirty Royal Family secrets.
I’m in favor! I’d love to see another Parker movie, though I agree – it shouldn’t be the first one again. And I’d hope they stick close to the story, since Westlake was pretty exacting about his plot and character. I think that “Sour Lemon Score” would be a great flick.
I’m not sure Statham’s range goes beyond playing Jason Statham. Not that the part will be THAT different, but he typically plays a current or formerly working class British guy who kind of mumbles his lines, and he’s the same guy in The Bank Job, Death Race, what-have-you. It seems like a fit that might work, but its not going to be the same character from the books.
I am kind of un-enthusiastic about Statham as Parker. But if they stay true to Westlake’s character he might be okay. I think other actor’s would be better.
Benicio Del Toro would have been an interesting choice. Clive Owen comes to mind too,( he was pretty close in “Shoot ‘em Up”.
Been a wierd time for my favorite character(s) roles this year. First “Conan” is being portrayed by Jason Momoa. Gotta wait and see about that.
Maybe “Flashman” will get another shot, that would be a nice one to try.
Hope Mr. Westlake isn’t spinning in his grave.
I think Statham is a good choice, a much better choice than Robert Duvall, Peter Coyote or Mel Gibson. He’s got the correct cold stare and sneer. We never get too deep into Parker’s head in the books which could lead to a number of ways of reading the character.
My problem is using The Hunter as a plot. ANother remake of this book may as well be a remake of The Limey or another remake of Get Carter. I’m let down that Westlake was such a good plotter and the film industry shows little interest in the other Parker Books
I think Statham is an interesting choice. He shares a certain coldness with Parker. But the character description is not encouraging, nor is the speculation that this will not be based on any one book, but rather a new adventure concocted for the screen. Westlake dreamed up twenty-something crackerjack plots, with vivid supporting characters and explosive endings. But let’s ignore all that and start fresh. Oooooooookay.
HE IS THE BEST FOR THIS ROLE.love Jason.
I could see Statham doing a good job as Parker. The problem does not lie with any potential actor, but with the real evil: the producers. They are going to monkey with the formula in order to assuage their own fears about the perceived lowest-common denominator audience. I wouldn’t be too surprised if the final version has Parker befriending a spunky 10-year old orphan girl. Be prepared for the worst, people.
Somewhere I have something from Brian Garfield regarding his never-filmed screenplay for Butcher’s Moon. He mentioned that TPTB wanted Parker to rescue a little kid from being hit by a car near the beginning so that the audience would like him better. And, of course, Brian Helgeland has a million horror stories about trying to keep Payback reasonably close to the novel…
If they were adapting one of the books where Parker mostly wants his money back (apart from The Hunter, which I think doesn’t exactly need yet another remake), I’d be a lot happier with Statham’s hire. Statham tends to make the same movie over and over, and it’s usually big on vaguely silly (but enjoyable) action sequences and extremely straightforward plots rather than tense heists and subtle character confrontations. At least if he’s gunning for cash after a robbery his usual antics would feel like more of a natural fit.
I am producing the movie PARKER. I was a friend of Don Westlake for 35 years and have worked hard to make this the definitive PARKER. I have read every book several times and ask myself at every juncture if Don would approve. I think he is smiling upon us because so far every decision has proven correct. We are adapting the book FLASHFIRE – written after the hiatus meaning that Claire is a part of the story. Jason Statham IS PARKER – and this will be the first movie granted the right to call the character PARKER and to name the movie the same.
Taylor Hackford “gets” it and is planning a tough, sparse film that approaches the story as Don did when writing it. John McLaughlin (BLACK SWAN) wrote a great script that truly is an adaptation rather than a translation. The movie starts production early July in New Orleans and Palm Beach and should be in theaters this time next year.
Great, thank you. that is very promising.
And…really, no hope of having Jack Palance instead of Jason Statham?
I was disappointed in DePalma’s handling of Black Dahlia – as good as he can be, his movies are often, IMO, fatally flawed. Speaking of Ellroy, I’m sorry White Jazz hasn’t been filmed yet – I think George Clooney would have been a good choice as Dave Klein, but he dropped out of the running years ago. GC would probably do very well as Parker. For the most part, I enjoyed Mel Gibson in the director’s cut of Payback. Someone less familiar might be better, though – such as Michael Rooker. I’ll have to check out Statham again – I’m not that familiar with him either.
Statham is perfect as Parker, and here’s why. Statham’s most identifiable product so far is the Transporter and Crank series. In these films, you do not care about Frank Martin or Chev Chelios’ characters. They, like Parker, are cardboard characters redeemed by a strong, identifiable moral code, a head for plotting, and big fists. You are amazed at how they beat the odds. You care that the bad guys get their asses kicked…They have a repugnant moral code.
Happy to hear that Parker’s been revived, but…Problems: Lest future screenwriters miss Parker’s essence, he is not intended to be remotely tech-savvy. If necessary, Parker would have to bring that sort on a job (An underused motif in bring Parker novels to the screen is his scattered association of anonymous cohorts). Also, true Parker adaptations should have mundane, almost rural locations. I would be concerned w/Statham’s Cockney accent.
Parker has hair; Stratham does not. Parker is tall and big; Stratham is short and compact. Parker is American; Stratham is British and I have never seen him in anything where he plays other than British. Parker is deliberate, persistent and cold; Stratham typically plays instinctive, reactive and hot. I’m not convinced of the casting choice here.
I agree with Steve Baker’s suggestion of Clive Owen. For years I thought he would make the perfect Parker. Not only is Shoot ‘em Up a good example, but also check out Owen in Sin City and Inside Man, especially the latter. He’s British, but he can handle an American accent perfectly.
Saw Jason Statham filming at the Ohio State Fair yesterday. Crew members told me they were working on a “project” called “Parker”… Scene had lots of smoke and a huge crowd moving quickly with him in the middle of it. Looked like he was running away and trying to blend into the crowd. Was pretty cool!
ajb summed it up best, Statham is the worst choice for Parker since Peter Coyote. How they didn’t cast Jon Hamm is baffling to me.
David is right: Jon Hamm is another excellent choice.
I personally think Hamm is a terrible choice. Given the opportunity, I would cast Josh Brolin in the role of Parker. I think he’d be perfect. He’s good-looking, but not pretty. Most movie-goers ike and respect him. And you don’t think he’s faking it when he plays “tough”. I think Hamm would fall completely flat in a “tough guy” role.
Oh hell’s teeth. David, JGA, between the two of you you just scuppered a blog post I was planning to write. I was gonna run through fantasy (contemporary) casting choices for Parker, discounting Jon Hamm (good though I think he’d be) in favor of Josh Brolin, who would be absolutely perfect. Drat! Back the drawing board…
Great minds, Nick!
These comment sections are just fine for discussing things, but one thing – and the ONLY thing – this site may be lacking is a message board.
I was thinking that myself only the other day, but the only trouble is, I wouldn’t have time to mod such a thing, and I’m almost positive Trent wouldn’t either!
We do have a message board of sorts–the Parker Yahoo group. But since I went to a blog format and people could leave comments, no one much uses it.
I’d be delighted if that changed! It’s right here if you’d like to join and get something going: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/theviolentworldofparker/
I don’t actually run this, but a regular reader and good friend of the site does. I’d be happy to start pushing it if I had an inkling that people would start using it again.
I’ll check it out!
Ray Stevenson would make a great Parker. He’s an English actor from the HBO series Rome and the movie Punisher: War Zone among many other things. Big, rough-looking and can handle an American accent easily–in addition to being a great actor.
LOL, I’m so old I thought you meant JAMES Brolin JGA. I was like, with the beard and everything? Yeah, maybe Josh Brolin could pull it off. I’d take anyone over Jason Statham at this point. Except for Vin Diesel. I’m at least thankful he was never considered.
I’d think James Brolin would be too old, wouldn’t he?
David, I must admit, I had the same initial reaction as you when Trent posted news of Jason Statham playing Parker. The Parker I see in my head is somewhere between Robert McGinnis and Darwyn Cooke’s versions, which is why I thought Josh Brolin would be perfect – that and the fact he’s not so much a movie star as a character actor (like, say, Warren Oates), which I think is what’s needed for Parker. But Jason Statham is who we have, and I guess Robert Duvall proved in The Outfit that you don’t have to look like Parker (or even be called Parker) to FEEL like Parker. If Mr. Statham can tap into the cold, taciturn, quietly menacing nature of Parker, then all will be well.
I wish I shared your optimism, Nick. I gave Crank a shot the other night in hopes of seeing something I hadn’t seen in Statham’s previous movies, but alas it was the same old Jason doing his typical Jason thing.
Oh, and the more I think about it you guys may be onto something there with Josh Brolin. Though I still stand by my Jon Hamm choice as a strong contender.
But yeah, we’re stuck with Jason Statham (for now anyway) so I’ll grin and bear it and probably be there opening weekend…gadammit.
‘zactly. It’s a Parker movie, with the lead character actually named Parker for the first time. We’re all gonna be at the front of that cinema queue!
This is off-topic, but there is a film based on the excellent novella Drive by James Sallis coming out soon. The novella is about a stuntman who moonlights as a getaway driver. I saw the trailer recently on IMDB and it looks like this movie is gonna rock.
Ha, nice one Dave. I, too, was trying to think of a way to post it here. The trailer brought to mind Mike Carlow. The trailer had a very Parker-esque tone to it and I’m looking forward to seeing it on the big screen.