Anthony Russo and Joseph Russo, collectively known as the Russo Brothers, are serious Hollywood hot property.
Off the back of their hugely successful hit Avengers: Endgame, the powerhouse directing/producing team are now said to be in early development with a live-action remake of Disney’s 1997 Hercules.
And if it’s anything like Endgame, count us in.
Snatched as a baby by Hades and forced to live among mortals as a half-man, half-god, Hercules needed to perform a rite of passage on Earth to prove himself worthy of living with the gods on Mount Olympus, so with the help of his satyr mentor (who was voiced by Danny DeVito), he learns how to use his strength to defeat a series of evil creatures.
The original musical retelling of the Hercules legend was directed by Ron Clements and John Musker with the titular character voiced by Tate Donovan (Jimmy Cooper from The OC).
Excitingly, the film is expected to include songs from the original film plus a bevy of new ones — which is exactly what the world needs right now.
According to DisInsider, Dave Callaham, who has credits on The Expendables, Godzilla and Wonder Woman: 1984 has signed on to write the script while actor/producer/director Jon Favreau — who directed The Lion King remake as well as produced Star Wars: The Mandalorian — is being rumoured to direct.
Unfortunately, there’s no word on who will be playing the titular character himself — but we’re hoping he’s an all-singing, all-dancing, muscly God. Is that too much to ask?
When it was first released, Hercules generated $252 million at the worldwide box office on a budget of just $85 million.
This new live-action film will follow in the footsteps of Disney remakes like Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin and The Lion King, and will be a theatrical release, not a Disney+ original.