James Wan, co-creator of the Saw franchise, is to direct a remake of the Korean thriller The Gangster, The Cop, The Devil. Although he also has two Aquaman films under his belt, director James Wan is better known for his work in the horror genre. He co-created the Saw and Conjuring franchises, and has directed ... Saw co-creator James Wan to direct a remake of The Gangster, The Cop, The Devil
James Wan, co-creator of the Saw franchise, is to direct a remake of the Korean thriller The Gangster, The Cop, The Devil.
Although he also has two Aquaman films under his belt, director James Wan is better known for his work in the horror genre. He co-created the Saw and Conjuring franchises, and has directed such films as Insidious and its sequel as well as the likeably bizarre Malignant.
Wan’s a good fit, then, for the dark (and at times blackly comic) world of The Gangster, The Cop, The Devil. A Korean crime thriller released in 2019, it’s now been picked up by for a remake, with Wan set to direct and produce via his company, Atomic Monster.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Paramount – a studio whom Wan has worked with multiple times in the past – will distribute the remake, while the original film’s star, Ma Dong-seok, will also have a major role in the new US version.
Directed by Lee Won-tae, The Gangster, The Cop, The Devil has a neat, pulpy hook: a scruffy detective (played by Kim Mu-yeol) and a tough crime boss (Ma Dong-seok) team up to catch a serial killer.
It was well-received at global film festivals, and talk of a remake sprang up almost immediately – at one stage, Sylvester Stallone was going to produce it via his company, Balboa Productions. Presumably, that iteration fell apart at some point.
James Wan’s version will be written by Shay Hatten, the screenwriter behind some recent John Wick entries (including the spin-off, Ballerina) and Zach Cregger’s upcoming Resident Evil movie.
(Hatten also wrote the script Maximum King, a fictionalised account of Stephen King’s attempt to make his directorial debut with the 1986 horror, Maximum Overdrive, which is well worth tracking down if you can find it.)
More on James Wan’s thriller remake as it comes in.
