Colin Firth to play the villain in Spike Lee’s Oldboy remake?

By Eric Walkuski

Posted 15 years ago

Last Updated on July 23, 2021

If this little casting rumor turns out to be true, then you can consider me becoming more and more intrigued with Spike Lee’s remake of OLDBOY.

Twitch broke the news today that British thesp and recent Oscar winner Colin Firth (THE KING’S SPEECH) has been offered the role of the villain in OLDBOY; the role was inhabited by Ji-tae Yu in the Chan-wook Park movie. He’d be squaring off against Josh Brolin’s vengeful anti-hero.

sponsored content

Before anyone goes nuts, make sure you realize that this is in no way a done deal. Just because an offer is out doesn’t mean it has been accepted. That said, it’s interesting to see who the filmmakers are targeting for their remake – at the very least, their casting ideas are very solid. (And if you happen to be a skeptic, you should note that Twitch was the first outlet to break the news that Brolin was attached to the flick.)

Here’s the synopsis for the Korean original. Except for the names, we can assume that the new film’s plot is basically the same: Oh Dae-su is an ordinary Seoul businessman with wife and little daughter who, after a drunken night on the town, is abducted and locked up in a strange and private “prison.” No one will tell him why he’s there and who his jailer is. His fury builds to a single-minded focus of revenge. 15 years later, he is unexpectedly freed, given a new suit, a cell-phone and 5 days to discover the mysterious enemy who had him imprisoned. Seeking vengeance on all those involved, he soon finds that his enemy’s tortures are just beginning.

We’ll certainly be keeping a close eye on this development…

Firth’s KING’S SPEECH co-star Helena Bonham Carter

Source: Twitch

About the Author

Eric Walkuski

Film Critic

10,340 Articles Published

Favorite Movies: Jaws, Star Wars Trilogy, Aliens, Citizen Kane, The Third Man, Dawn read more of the Dead ('78), The Texas Chainsaw Massacre ('74), Fargo, Miller's Crossing, Reservoir Dogs, The Manchurian Candidate ('62), Taxi Driver, Back to the Future, Stand by Me, Shaun of the Dead, Boogie Nights, La Dolce Vita, 12 Angry Men, The Birds, Touch of Evil

Likes: Film, Beer (who the hell DOESN'T around here?!), writing, NY Mets, read more The Jets, Girls who love film AND beer (at the same time), Jazz, Deadwood, The Wire, The Office, The Twilight Zone, Cormac McCarthy, Graham Greene, Stephen King, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Scorsese, Spielberg, Halloween season, Marvel movies, Breaking Bad, The Walking Dead, Ash vs Evil Dead, Game of Thrones, Edgar Allen Poe, Mother Nature

The comment section exists to allow readers to discuss the article constructively and respectfully, focused on the topic at hand.

What’s Not Allowed

Abusive language, insults, or harassment toward other users or staff.
Hate speech of any kind is strictly prohibited.
Bickering, bullying, personal attacks, or baiting others to argue
Extended off-topic debates, especially those centered on politics or religion rather than the article topic
No AI content or SPAM