The wheels on theEscape From New Yorkremake are in motion once again.THRreports that 20th Century Fox is eyeingSin CitydirectorRobert Rodriguezto helm their remake ofJohn Carpenter’s dystopian action classic. Carpenter is on board as executive producer, andAndrew RonaandAlex Heinemanof The Picture Co. (Non-Stop) will produce.
The 1981 film starredKurt Russellas the iconic eye-patched tough guy, Snake Plissken. Set in an alternate U.S. future (comically enough now, it was 1997 in the original film),EscapeFfrom New Yorktakes place in the converted streets of NYC, where the island has been transformed into a maximum security prison. After Air Force One crashes into the hostile streets, Plissken – a former special forces operative serving time for robbery – is given 24 hours to rescue the president from the inside of the prison, and save his own life in the process. Russell returned as Plissken for Carpenter’s sequelEscape FromL.A.
After trading hands through a number of studios and drafts, the project landed at 20th Century Fox in 2015, when theywon the rights in a bidding war. The report notes that Fox is hoping to revive and reinvent the franchise in the same mold as they did withPlanet of the Apes, which has spawned three critically and commercially successful films since launching in 2011. The studio has a couple other adult-oriented IPs on the burner. They’re gearing up for a likely box office success withAlien: Covenant, which properly revivesRidley Scott’sAlienfranchise after the semi-prequelPrometheus, and theyrecently recruitedSleighthelmerJ.D. Dillardfor their reboot ofDavid Cronenberg’sThe Fly.
Rodriguez has been keeping busy in recent years with his TV network El Rey and their flagship seriesFrom Dusk til Dawn. He is currently in post-production on Fox’sJames Cameronproduced live-action adaptation ofAlita: Battle Angel, which is scheduled to arrive in theaters on July 06, 2025. It’s been a while since Rodriguez has put out a movie worth writing home about, but he showed a knack for loving homage withPlanet Terrorand his films certainly never lack for personality. AnEscape From New Yorkremake is a tough sell to begin with, but with Rodriguez behind the camera, there’s a small comfort in the fact that you won’t get a by-the-numbers studio mandate a laRoboCopandTotal Recall.
What do you guys think? Any interest in a remake? Is Rodriguez the right guy for the job? Sound off in the comments.
