Has Dave Bautista found his next role? According to Variety, the actor, 56, has been offered a leading role in Amazon MGM Studios’ Road House 2. The sequel to the streamer’s 2024 hit Road House will see star Jake Gyllenhaal reprise his role as ex-UFC fighter Dalton and Guy Ritchie (Sherlock Holmes) take over the directing reins from Doug Liman (Edge of Tomorrow). The fledgling franchise is a remake of the 1989 cult favorite Road House, which starred Patrick Swayze as Dalton, a legendary bouncer and martial artist enlisted to bring order to a seedy bar in Missouri, and soon finds himself up against the ruthless crime boss who runs their town.
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The remake of Road House with Gyllenhaal broke viewing records when it premiered on Amazon Prime Video in March of last year. The film attracted nearly 80 million worldwide viewers in its first eight weeks, and according to then-studio chief Jennifer Salke, was Amazon MGM Studios’ “most-watched produced film debut ever on a worldwide basis.”
Despite the reboot’s high viewership, the Road House remake failed to resonate with both audiences and critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film scored a middling 60% with critics and an even lower 52% with viewers. Furthermore, the remake was plagued with a lawsuit from the original’s screenwriter and backlash from Liman when it was released. Not to mention, Road House also included the feature film debut of controversial MMA fighter Conor McGregor.
Bautista Would Be Perfect for Road House 2, But Is the Property Too Contentious?
We can see why Ritchie and Amazon MGM want Bautista to join the Road House sequel. Bautista began his career in entertainment as a wrestler with the WWE under the moniker Batista. His role as Drax in the Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy and Avengers films shot him to stardom in 2014. Since then, Bautista has continued his hot streak appearing in juggernauts like Blade Runner 2049, Knock at the Cabin, and Denis Villeneuve’s Dune films. He undoubtedly has the acting chops and fight experience to join Gyllenhaal either as friend or foe in Road House 2. But the question is whether or not he wants to join the project given the remake’s less than stellar reputation.
When Road House premiered last year at the SXSW festival, director Doug Liman refused to attend in order to protest Amazon MGM Studios’ choice to not release the film theatrically first.
“Because contrary to their public statements, Amazon has no interest in supporting cinemas … Amazon asked me and the film community to trust them and their public statements about supporting cinemas, and then they turned around and are using Road House to sell plumbing fixtures.” Liman wrote in a guest column in Deadline.
Liman later further decried the film’s release on streaming since it deprived him and the rest of the creative team a chance at earning on the backend on Road House‘s success. Bautista may still sign on to join Road House 2, but he clearly has a lot to consider when making his decision.
Road House (2024) is currently streaming on Prime Video.
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(Photo by Bruce Glikas/Bruce Glikas/FilmMagic)
