One of the many projects that writer-director Shane Black has found himself attached to in recent years has been Doc Savage, which first sparked to life back in 2009.
Since that time, it’s a pulp adaptation that has largely remained on the back-burner, but while promoting his imminent crime noir flick The Nice Guys, Black revealed that he has set sights on Dwayne Johnson to take point as the title character.
Though he acknowledged the actor’s crammed slate could present problems, the filmmaker remained confident that the big-screen rendition of Doc Savage can march into production in 2017.
Per Thrillist:
“Doc Savage is sort of in the ether now. We’re hoping to make it sometime next year. I would very much like to do Doc with a fellow named Dwayne Johnson if we can make that work. I made a decision that Dwayne is the guy. It’s on the back burner while he’s busy.”
Emerging during the genre’s golden age during the 30s, Doc Savage is a scientist, inventor, physician and explorer engineered by scientists to be the archetypal hero. In years prior, the likes of Chris Hemsworth and other Hollywood A-listers circled the role, though it would appear Black and Johnson is the more likely duo at this point.
Set to be inspired by Lester Dent’s run of pulp novels, Doc Savage will hope to fire up production sometime next year. Dwayne Johnson is currently trumpeting the arrival of Paramount’s stylish Baywatch reboot. Shane Black, on the other hand, is finally ready to deliver the Predator reboot that the dormant franchise deserves. The films will arrive in May of 2017 and March, 2018, respectively.