Glen Powell to Star in a Remake of Ron Howard’s BACKDRAFT — GeekTyrant

According to producer Brian Grazer, Twisters and Top Gun: Maverick star Glen Powell might be starring in a remake of director Ron Howard’s classic 1991 film Backdraft. 

Grazer revealed the news on CNBC, and said: “These formats of the late ’90s and the 2000s have become very important because the streamers, or studios, are right now even more risk-averse.”

Grazer added: “They like brands that are already established that people have high level of awareness to, where you actually add a new twist, or really interesting casting, which is of course what we’re doing with ours.

“We’re doing something with Sydney Sweeney which I’m very excited about. We’re doing something with Scarlett Johansson, also very excited about. I mentioned Glen Powell with Backdraft.”

Ugh, I hate that Hollywood is just going to keep spewing out these remakes and sequels. But shit, audiences aren’t really watching original movies, which is a shame.

I loved the original Backdraft movie, which stars Kurt Russell, Donald Sutherland, Robert De Niro, William Baldwin, and Jennifer Jason Leigh.

The film centers around the McCaffrey brothers, Stephen (Russell) and Brian (Baldwin), who are both firefighters in Chicago. Following in the footsteps of their late father, a legendary firefighter who died in the line of duty, the brothers navigate a complicated relationship marked by rivalry and respect.

Stephen, the older brother, is a seasoned and fearless firefighter, while Brian, struggling to escape his brother’s shadow, is a rookie trying to prove himself. The story unfolds as the brothers confront dangerous fires and uncover a series of suspicious arson cases plaguing the city.

As the McCaffrey brothers delve deeper into the investigation, they team up with arson investigator Donald ‘Shadow’ Rimgale (De Niro) to uncover the truth behind the deadly fires. The movie pays homage to the heroism of firefighters.

There was a direct-to-video sequel was released in 2019 which saw Sutherland and William Baldwin reprise their roles, but I don’t think anyone wants to acknowledge the existence of that.