After rumours have circulated for a little while, a reboot of the 80s movie Road House with Jake Gyllenhaal in the lead role has officially been greenlit by Prime Video. Doug Liman is set to direct, and the cast has been rounded out with a young ensemble.
The original Road House starred Patrick Swayze as a ‘cooler’ at a notorious dive bar, with Kelly Lynch as his love interest. Sam Elliott played his mentor Wade, and Ben Gazzara played the antagonist. So far, it doesn’t look like Liman’s version will have the older mentor character, or that he hasn’t been cast yet, at least. Cast-members who have been announced include Billy Magnussen (No Time to Die), Daniela Melchior (The Suicide Squad), and Lukas Gage (The White Lotus).
Gyllenhaal’s main character will be a former UFC fighter who takes a job as a bouncer at a rough-and-tumble roadhouse in the Florida Keys, but “soon discovers that not everything is what it seems in this tropical paradise.” Doug Liman said; “I’m thrilled to put my own spin on the beloved Road House legacy. And I can’t wait to show audiences what Jake and I are going to do with this iconic role.”
Jake Gyllenhaal is currently attached to over fifteen upcoming projects, and it looks as though Prime Video has seized upon a gap in his schedule, because production is set to begin on Road House next week. He is lined up to play Robert Evans in a movie called Francis and The Godfather, with Oscar Isaac playing Coppola.
Doug Liman is the director of The Bourne Identity, Mr & Mrs Smith, and Edge of Tomorrow (AKA Live Die Repeat). His rumoured upcoming projects include a Tom Cruise space movie actually filmed in space, and a sequel called Live Die Repeat…and Repeat.
A 2015 reboot of Road House starring UFC fighter Ronda Rousey never came to fruition, but maybe some elements of that script have been used if Gyllenhaal is playing a former UFC fighter.
While we wait for more news on Road House, check out our guide to the best action movies.