PARKER is getting more manly by the moment.
The latest movie adaptation of writer Richard Stark/Donald Westlake’s character has Jason Statham in the title role of a career thief without much of a moral compass.
A good anti-hero needs an appropriate adversary, and Statham’s PARKER will butt bald heads with Michael Chiklis, who demonstrated his skill and willingness to go darkside on seven seasons of “The Shield.”
Taylor Hackford (RAY, AGAINST ALL ODDS) is directing the crime thriller, which also has Clifton Collins Jr., Wendell Pierce (“The Wire”) and Jennifer Lopez lined up for roles.
No story details are known yet, but it will likely involve lots of shooting and punching and stealing and doublecrosses. The script is reportedly a blend of different elements from across Westlake’s Parker novels rather than a direct adaptation of any one in particular.
Statham will be the first actor to portray the character by his novel namesake — Lee Marvin, Peter Coyote, Jim Brown and Robert Duvall played Parker variations in different movies, and Mel Gibson was the most recent (as “Porter”) in PAYBACK.
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