Paramount Pictures is set to reboot the 1997 John Woo thriller Face/Off, which originally starred John Travolta and Nicolas Cage.
The re-make is being written by 22 Jump Street scribe Oren Uziel, which has fans of the original questioning if the new film will involve less action and more comedy.
Producer Neal Moritz – who has previously worked on the Fast & Furious franchise – is also attached to the film. And David Permut, who was a producer on the original movie, will act as executive producer.
The original Face/Off centers around the ongoing battle between Nicolas Cage’s maniacal terrorist character, and John Travolta’s FBI.
Watch: The original Face/Off Trailer
In the movie, Travolta’s FBI agent switches faces with Cage in order to track down a bomb. After some resulting chaos, the pair end up switching identities (meaning the good guy becomes the bad guy, and vice versa).
At the time the concept was seen as a refreshing take on John Woo’s typical action film, which is generally more ‘splosions and slow-motion gunfights than story-led.
The original film was years in development, before the duo signed on. In the end, the film made a healthy US$245 million (on an US$80-million budget) and is now thought of as one of the director’s finest films.
While little is known about the reboot beyond who is attached as writer and producer, there is speculation that the re-boot will involve more comedy elements than the original.
