Despite never having played one, if someone asked me to describe Denzel Washington in one word it would be cowboy. The guy has a swagger and a presence that cannot be argued. Every movie he is in, he owns the screen. Whether it be drama, action, or thriller, Denzel Washington is a badass. Now, after having reunited with the director who led him to an Oscar winning role in TRAINING DAY for this year’s THE EQUALIZER, Washington and Antoine Fuqua may work together again on a remake of THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN.
The classic western, itself a remake of Akira Kurosawa‘s immortal SEVEN SAMURAI, has been in development for years. At one point it had names such as Tom Cruise, TRUE DETECTIVE’S Nic Pizzolatto, and John Lee Hancock attached but it never got off the ground. Now, with Fuqua rumored to take over, Denzel Washington‘s name may just entice six more badasses to join forces in what could be a Western version of THE EXPENDABLES.
I think it goes without saying that this is a good idea. While remakes are rarely ever looked at as a good idea, especially when the original is regarded as a classic, but THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN being kept a Western (set in post-Civil War America according to Deadline) and not moved to a contemporary setting could make for the classic kind of Hollywood magic that we don’t get to see all that much of anymore. The only question is who will play the other six gunslingers?