The countercultural road movie Easy Rider could be remade for a modern audience as producers look for ‘bold’ takes on the story.
Easy Rider is a true American classic, one of the films generally credited with kickstarting the New Hollywood era, a purple patch of creative fertility that many consider to be Hollywood’s most finest decade. So this should be cheery news. According to reports today, the right holders of the 1969 film are exploring remaking the movie, updating it for a modern audience by seeking ‘bold’ takes from filmmakers with a ‘fringe spirit.’
If nothing else, the right kind of adjectives are being used here as the original was nothing less than a countercultural classic, its brazen depiction of drug use and alternate lifestyles helping to push Hollywood films in a new and exciting direction. Perhaps less comfortingly, the report from Variety also states that the producers referenced Creed as an example, using its success as a spin-off from an established classic to illustrate the scope of their ambitions.
Capturing the provocative and charged nature of the original Easy Rider whilst aiming to emulate the mainstream success of Creed would be quite the balancing act and it will be interesting to see what direction this project ultimately ends up taking.
The 1969 film was directed by Dennis Hopper who also starred in the film, alongside Peter Fonda and a young Jack Nicholson. We’ll bring you more on this story as we hear it.
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