Before Zack Snyder directed films such as 300, Watchmen, and Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, he first made a name for himself by helming a well-received remake of the classic zombie film Dawn of the Dead. More than two decades later, Snyder is once again lined up to remake a genre classic. This time around, he’ll be bringing Escape from New York back to life, and the biggest question surrounding that project is who will be cast to portray Snake Plissken, who was memorably portrayed by Kurt Russell in the original movies. One possibility could be Jason Momoa, who obviously has a history with Snyder, but don’t expect the actor to sign on.
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In an interview with ComicBook to promote this month’s Supergirl (in theaters June 26th), Momoa addressed the likelihood of him joining the Escape from New York remake. “Do we need a remake? I even like [Escape from L.A.],” he said. “And I love Kurt Russell, and the truth of it is, like, as much as I love Zack, someone’s like, ‘I want you to do Snake,’ and I’m like, ‘I love Kurt Russell. I don’t want to.’ I would never want to step into that. It’s one of those things where you’re like, oh my God, I would love to do that. But at the same time, I’m like, I love him too much … I really love Kurt, and I [say] good luck to whatever actor is going to do that.”
He continued, explaining how this situation is different from the Conan the Barbarian remake he starred in. “I didn’t grow up with Conan. I grew up reading Robert E. Howard. I didn’t grow up with Arnold’s thing. My mom raised me on, like, Gone with the Wind, and Barefoot in the Park, and Hitchcock movies.”
Jason Momoa Highlights a Problem With the Escape from New York Remake
With his charismatic and magnetic screen presence, Momoa would definitely be an entertaining pick for the new Snake Plissken. That said, his sentiment about the Escape from New York remake is understandable. He has a great deal of reverence for the original, which is a cult classic and one of the best action movies of the 1980s. Remakes are always tricky propositions, especially when they’re reimagining a film of that pedigree. Snyder has proven himself in this realm before with Dawn of the Dead, but it sounds like Momoa is a little leery of the new Escape from New York. As fun as it might be for the actor to play Snake, a part of him would probably feel like he’d be messing with one of his all-time favorites.
If Momoa feels this way, odds are there are other actors who do as well. That’s a hurdle Snyder’s Escape from New York is going to have to deal with. There’s a chance the pool of Snake Plissken candidates is limited. Depending on how the situation unfolds from here, this could become similar to the American Psycho remake that’s in development; earlier this year, American Psycho author Bret Easton Ellis said “a couple of high-profile actors” passed on the project because they didn’t want to be compared to Christian Bale, who delivered one of his best performances as Patrick Bateman.
Of course, similar to how Momoa didn’t grow up with Conan the Barbarian, there are probably several actors out there who weren’t raised on the original Escape from New York. Perhaps the best thing Snyder could do during the casting process is target people who fall under that category. That way, the leading man could approach the role as just another gig — rather than following the footsteps of one of their idols. There’s no escaping the fact that Escape from New York is a remake of a well-known film, but a lack of familiarity with the source material could be freeing for the new Snake Plissken.
It’ll be interesting to see who Snyder casts. There are two directions he can go; he could cast a recognizable name, which might be preferable from the studio’s perspective because they could build a marketing campaign around a bona fide star. Or, Snyder could go with a relative unknown, someone who doesn’t bring as much baggage to the production. The Escape from New York brand and iconography will be the main draw here, and it might be easier to sell someone as the new Snake if it’s a fresh-faced lead.
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