Director Zack Snyder is turning his hand to mixed martial arts with Brawler, the story of a fighter who “gets a shot at a UFC championship”.
Following the grimdark space opera of his Rebel Moon movies, director Zack Snyder has announced his next project: Brawler. It’s set in the sinewy, bruising world of mixed martial arts, and will be made in conjunction with Ultimate Fighting Championship and Saudi Arabia’s Government Entertainment Authority department.
According to TheWrap, Brawler will see Snyder reunite with Kurt Johnstad and Shay Hatten, who co-wrote the Rebel Moon films with him. It’s a markedly different project for the trio, though, given how special effects heavy those sci-fi action films were. A brief synopsis reads:
Rising from the rough streets of Los Angeles, a young fighter gets a shot at a UFC championship, battling his inner demons as he fights for redemption.
It’s a sports underdog story in the mode of Rocky and other films of its type, then – although the Italian Stallion would blanche at some of the teeth-loosening mayhem that goes on in a typical UFC fight. Brawler isn’t the first film to explore mixed martial arts – Gavin O’Connor’s Warrior (2011) memorably did so – but it appears to be the latest step in UFC’s attempt to make its presence known in cinemas.
Last year’s Road House remake was made with the company’s assistance to some degree, with Jake Gyllenhaal’s character shown taking part in a UFC tournament. The firm’s president, Dana White, even made a cameo appearance during a sequence filmed during a Las Vegas fight.
Of Brawler, White said in a statement, “It’s an incredibly ambitious project and I look forward to seeing it come to life.”
“Behind every great fighter is the story of how they got there,” Snyder in his own statement. “UFC is the world leader in combat sports, and I’m honoured to be partnering with them to tell this incredible story.”
From the beginning of his filmmaking career, Snyder has shown a fascination with muscular torsos and bone-crunching fight scenes, often shot in glorious slow-motion. Brawler will offer him the chance to bring that style to bear on what sounds like a more grounded film than we saw in the likes of 300 or Batman V Superman.
In the meantime, Jake Gyllenhaal is set to reprise his role as ex-UFC fighter Elwood Dalton in a Road House sequel. It remains to be seen whether UFC will be involved in that film, too; one thing we’re confident in predicting is that Doug Liman won’t be returning to direct.
We’ll bring you more on Brawler as we get it.
