Highlander Reboot Will Be the Ultimate Battle of Dave Bautista’s Brute Force vs Henry Cavill’s Iconic Immortal
Hello everyone. Gather ‘round, because Hollywood has once again decided that nothing says creativity like rummaging through the attic of the 1980s, blowing the dust off a VHS tape, and screaming, “Reboot!” And this time, the victim of cinematic necromancy is Highlander. Yes, the cult classic of sword-swinging immortals is coming back – whether you actually wanted it or not – with director Chad Stahelski supposedly breathing new life into it. But don’t get too excited, you know how this story usually goes.
Henry Cavill will be playing Connor MacLeod, which is already a choice loaded with expectation. He’s Superman, he’s Geralt, he’s basically one genre role away from being contractually obligated to attend Comic-Con in perpetuity. And opposite him? Dave Bautista. Yes, Drax the Destroyer himself is here to play the Kurgan – the big, bad immortal who enjoys preposterously dramatic decapitations like a man collecting Funko Pops. Now, Bautista is as intimidating as a protein shake with a gym membership, so I can sort of see this working. But let’s remember that the Kurgan isn’t just a brute; he’s a sadistic, theatrical brute. There’s a tightrope to walk there, and I hope Bautista’s thespian range can manage more than “angry man with sword.”
Also lurking in this sword-stuffed production is Russell Crowe as Ramirez – the immortal mentor role made legendary by Sean Connery. Now, Crowe’s tendency to show up at various weights ranging from Gladiator-era fighting shape to “I just discovered the magic of cheese boards” could make for an interesting wildcard. But perhaps that’s fitting, because if immortality truly exists, it would probably allow for a few comfort snacks along the way. Still, Crowe brings gravitas… and hopefully, a coherent accent.
Now, a quick historical recap for those new to the chaos: the original 1986 Highlander was a gloriously bizarre mix of myth, rock ballads, and quirky performances. It was messy, it was melodramatic, but it was fun. It had Sean Connery as a Spanish-Egyptian immortal (because… why not?) teaching Christopher Lambert’s Scottish immortal (played by a Frenchman) how to chop heads in dramatic lighting. In other words, everything about it broke logic but somehow worked. Which is why this remake has a high bar to clear, in the same way an MMO raid has a minimum item level – you ignore it at your own peril.
Director Chad Stahelski, best known for clocking in four John Wick films’ worth of headshots, has apparently been attached to this for almost a decade. That’s a long time to stare at a screenplay while muttering, “There can be only one,” over and over again. He describes the property as packed with “great themes of immortality, love, and identity” wrapped in colorful mythology. Which sounds inspiring, but so do most movie press releases before studio interference flattens it into something resembling an AI-generated Netflix banner.
The big question: will Stahelski and writer Michael Finch stay loyal to the gloriously weird original or attempt a gritty, self-serious “realistic” take? Because if they sand off anything remotely eccentric in favor of the Hollywood formula, we’ll get another conveyor belt remake – competent, sterile, and about as memorable as a side quest where you fetch five wolf pelts. A true Highlander film shouldn’t be afraid of its own mythology; it should dive face-first into it like a conspiracy theorist at a conference. Give me the mad lore drops, the strange immortal rules, the lightning-struck sword fights – the same chaotic energy that made the original burn itself into cult legend.
This project finally starts filming next month, which apparently feels surreal to Stahelski, but what’s surreal to me is that a decade in development almost never produces a masterpiece. Usually, it produces a “we tried” situation that gets buried under streaming recommendations within three weeks. Just ask the gaming industry – anything that lingers in “development hell” too long comes out with the smell of burnt toast.
But who knows? Maybe Cavill, Bautista, and Crowe will clash swords, trade overacted monologues, and remind us why the Highlander concept worked in the first place. Or maybe we’ll all sit there watching aesthetically pleasing decapitations, wondering why we didn’t just rewatch the original and call it a day. In either case, we’re about to find out if this reboot can stand among the immortals of cinema… or if it’ll just be another headless corpse in the reboot graveyard.
Verdict? I’m cautiously pessimistic. The cast is solid, the director can choreograph action like nobody’s business, but unless they embrace the weird and avoid the temptation of generic blockbuster sludge, this Highlander reboot risks being all sword and no soul.
And that, ladies and gentlemen, is entirely my opinion.
Article Source: Dave Bautista Will Showdown With Henry Cavill In ‘Highlander’, https://gizmodo.com/highlander-reboot-dave-bautista-kurgen-2000640233
