Don't be confused by that headline. No,** Iron Man 3 **director Shane Black is not dipping back into the Marvel Cinematic Universe for a film focused on Asgard’s walking weapon, the one last seen destroying S.H.I.E.L.D. cars in Thor. Instead, he’s climbed aboard Sony’s planned adaptation of The Destroye****r series of adventure novels.
The book series, which currently numbers roughly 145, focuses on Remo Williams. He's a New Jersey cop who is framed for a crime, sentenced to death and then revived following a botched execution. He’s offered a second shot at life working for the clandestine US government agency CURE, where he’s teamed with an assassin called Chiun to eliminate threats to America’s interests.
Originally written by Warren Murphy and Richard Sapir starting in 1971 (though the first tome’s manuscript was actually completed in 1963), the Destroyer books ran successfully for more than two decades, swapping out authors and changing publishers from time to time. James Mullaney, one of the writers to have worked on it (and the sole name on the books when it finished in 2008), has crafted the script for the new film alongside Fight Club’s Jim Uhls.
If the Remo Williams name rings a bell in your head, that’s because the 1985 film, Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins – known in the UK as Remo: Unarmed And Dangerous – starred Fred Ward and Joel Grey as Remo and Chiun. It didn’t exactly set the cinematic action world on fire, but holds cult status for its cheesy style.
Producers Charles Roven and Steve Chasman, the men behind the** Dark Knight **trilogy and the Transporter films respectively, have been trying to get Remo up and fighting again since at least 2009.
“Shane has been a fan of the original Destroyer book series since its inception and he has an incredible vision for this film,” said Roven in a statement picked up by Deadline. “We couldn’t be more fortunate to be working with this talented director on this material. The narrative Jim and James have created is incredibly rich and while it’s a story rooted in adventure, it is also very much character driven.”
It’ll count as another addition for Black’s To-Do list, one that has been getting ever more crowded since the success of Iron Man 3. He’s currently working up private eye thriller The Nice Guys with Ryan Gosling and Russell Crowe attached, pulp adventure adaptation** Doc Savage and a new Predator sequel, among other things.