Update: Don’t expect the movie anytime soon, as Flynn tells Vulture, “We’re all so overcommitted right now that we’ll see on that one.”
And so begins the race for thinkpieces about a) David Fincher as our Hitchcock and b) The Master’s representation of females in relation to the work of Gillian Flynn. Anyway: Deadline tell us a Gone Girl reunion is being staged for WB’s Strangers on a Train remake, what with the long-developing project having now nabbed helmer Fincher, scribe Flynn, and star Ben Affleck. Lest you start cringing at the thought of yet another attempt to restage anything by Hitchcock, take some deep, lasting comfort in knowing their effort will instead be called Strangers on a Plane.
…is that not grabbing you? If nothing else, the story promises a version that’s both “contemporary and redefined for the times,” adding a few semi-interesting wrinkles to the key details. Rather than follow a tennis player who makes some cross-country scheming that goes a little too far, Flynn’s update will concern “a movie star–in the middle of campaign for an Oscar during awards season–whose private plane breaks down and is given a ride to LA on another plane by a wealthy stranger.”
Should you, like I, be curious to see how Fincher interprets Hitchcock while staging a healthy parody of vacuous Hollywood types — it’s not a matter of “if” with him, but “how” — there’s more good news: production is likely to commence within the next twelve months, with space being mad between Affleck’s duties on Live By Night and Justice League. (All while Flynn toys with a Gone Girl sequel that’s probably never going to happen.) So get out those whiteboards, Slate and Salon!
In the meantime, watch a trailer for the original below:
Does Strangers on a Plane seem like a wise idea, considering the talent involved?