The on-again off-again exploits of a big screen version of The A-Team are apparently back on. Again.
Variety reports that 20th Century Fox has hired Joe Carnahan (Smokin’ Aces) to direct the film with a start date of this June and a release date of Summer 2010. Along for the ride as producers will be brothers Ridley and Tony Scott, as well as the original show’s creator, Stephen J. Cannell. Carnahan will be working from a script by Skip Woods (G.I. Joe).
The show’s premise about four Vietnam veterans charged with armed robbery who escape from prison only to become mercenaries who fight for good causes was known for three things. 1) The characters of the mercs themselves and the actors who played them. 2) Their black van with its styling red stripe and rear wing. 3) The A-Team’s incredible ability to shoot hundreds of rounds of ammunition, blow up cars, trucks, and shacks, and still manage to never actually kill a single bad guy.
Fox is obviously hoping for a franchise here, and Ridley Scott agrees. “Tony and I feel that marrying this Scott Free project with Joe’s sensibility will result in a fast-paced, exciting franchise, one we hope will be around for years to come,” he said. They’ll be bringing the storyline up to date in various ways, most notably swapping in Iraq for Vietnam, but they also have a change in tone planned.
You can … make a film that reflects on the real world without losing the great sense of fun and the velocity of action in a classic summer popcorn film. This was a coveted property, and reimagining a show that I remembered as a kid was tough to turn down,” Carnahan said. “Fox hired me to make it as emotional, real and accessible as possible without cheesing it up.”
It’s not easy for a TV show to make the transition from the little screen to the big screen sans cheese… especially when it comes to shows from the eighties.
Do you love it when a plan comes together?