Eastern Promises
I thought David Cronenberg doing a big budget Robert Ludlum adaptation (The Matarese Circle) starring Denzel Washington and Tom Cruise was a crazy move for him, but now the man comes out and says he’s tentatively planning a sequel to Eastern Promises. If you’ve seen the film, you’ll know that there’s a reveal towards the end that opens up some potential avenues for exploration. MTV spoke to Mr. Cronenberg and learned that Viggo Mortensen, screenwriter Steven Knight, producer Paul Webster and Focus Features are all interested in continuing Nikolai’s story in some fashion. He says that they’re going to have a meeting soon to discuss the sequel’s direction. Cronenberg adds that he has “some very strong ideas about what I would like to see, but I would like to hear what they have to say as well. And then after that, if all goes well, Steve goes away and writes a great script. If we all like it, we make it.”
I’m down for pretty much anything from my favorite director, but the David Cronenberg of the 21st century has changed quite a bit. Not that I don’t love his recent couple for what they are, but I keep hoping he’ll use his increased clout from them and inevitably The Matarese Circle to secure some modest financing for his more perverse and subversive film interests. Or maybe he’d be interested in doing the Total Recall remake/re-adaptation since he nearly made that film before being replaced by Paul Verhoeven. Either way, I’m pretty damned pleased to just hear that he’s lining up projects in the first place.
