Dwayne Johnson stirring up Big Trouble in Little China remake

The Rock, currently starring in San Andreas, is eyeing the lead role in a new version of the John Carpenter martial arts classic originally starring Kurt Russell

Ready to rock? ... Dwayne Johnson. Photograph: Imaginechina/REX Shutterstock

Dwayne Johnson is tipped to star in a remake of John Carpenter’s cult hit Big Trouble in Little China, according to the Wrap.

Carpenter’s original tells the story of Jack Burton (Kurt Russell), a trucker who enters a mystical world of ancient sorcery after his fiancee is kidnapped by bandits in San Francisco’s Chinatown. The film flopped on release in 1986, with Carpenter blaming its failure on 20th Century Fox’s rush release. It has since gone on to achieve cult status, with Johnson, currently starring in the box office-trembling earthquake movie San Andreas, a high-profile fan.

Final say on the status of the remake lies with 20th Century Fox, who owns the rights to the movie. The studio is currently wrangling with a remake of another John Carpenter classic – Escape from New York. The film again starred Kurt Russell, this time as Snake Plissken, a special forces soldier tasked with saving the president from a terrorist group in a near-future dystopian America.

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Dwayne Johnson set to take on a gorilla, a lizard and a wolf in 80s arcade movie

The San Andreas star will headline video game adaptation Rampage, reuniting him with the producer of the hit earthquake romp

 

Rock on a roll ... Dwayne Johnson hopes to continue his box office success with Rampage. Photograph: Moviestore/REX_Shutterstock

Even though he’s only just finished surviving an earthquake in this summer’s disaster hit San Andreas, poor Dwayne Johnson will have to protect America from a gorilla, a lizard and a wolf in an adaptation of 1980s arcade game Rampage.

According to Deadline, Johnson will reunite with San Andreas producer Beau Flynn for the action film, set to start production next summer. The script will come from Ryan Engle, who wrote the Liam Neeson airborne thriller Non-Stop. The project is still seeking a director.

The game Rampage tells the story of three beasts who wreak havoc on major US cities, including a set of iconic landmarks. All three were originally humans who were experimented on by evil scientists. It was a hit in the 80s on a number of different platforms.

Studio New Line will be hoping the film can match the success of San Andreas, which has already made $415m worldwide. Dwayne Johnson was also part of the ensemble cast of April’s record-breaking sequel Fast & Furious 7, and will next be seen opposite Kevin Hart in the espionage comedy Central Intelligence.

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