Back in February it was revealed that Godzilla vs. Kong director Adam Wingard had been tapped to direct a new Face/Off movie with original reports indicating that it would be a remake of the 1997 John Woo-directed classic. Not longer after that Wingard confirmed that his film was not a remake and was being conceived as a sequel to the original film, and now the director has revealed his biggest card yet, he wants original stars John Travolta and Nicolas Cage to return as their characters. Speaking in a new interview, Wingard revealed that they’re writing the script now to feature both of the characters but the two Oscar winners involvement depends on how they like the draft.
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“Some people just assume when I say that that it just means it takes place in the world of Face/Off,” Wingard revealed to Showbiz CheatSheet. “To me, Face/Off isn’t about a procedure or anything like that. It’s not about the world that the characters exist in. It’s about Sean Archer and it’s about Castor Troy. That’s what this movie is about. It’s the continuation of that story. It’s hard to talk about other than that but this is, to me, the definitive continuation of that saga.”
Wingard confirmed that he and frequent partner Simon Barrett are almost done with their first draft which they’ll soon turn in to the studio, but for now things are looking good.
“They’ve read our outline. Everybody’s on board with it but actually turning in the script’s a different thing so we’ll see how everybody reacts to it.”
As for the actual literal face offing of a Face/Off sequel, it’s unclear where the new movie stands or how it will incorporate that motif, if at all. One thing is for sure, it won’t be a movie about two new characters being Face/Off’d without Sean Archer and Castor Troy appearing. Wingard said as much and concluded, “The story is leading us in a very specific direction.”
The news of both Travolta and Cage returning might be a surprise to fans of the original movie since it concludes with Cage’s Castor Troy (appearing as Travolta’s Sean Archer) being killed by the later (who is wearing the face of Troy (layers people)). In the end Travolta gets his own face re-attached and returns to his family life, but perhaps the new film will simply find Castor Troy’s face being put unto multiple other persons, leading to Cage playing multiple roles. We’ll have to wait and see.
