UPDATE: Just weeks before its June start date, Alcon’s remake of Point Break has lost its star. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Gerard Butler backed out of the project because its months-long shooting conflicts with London Has Fallen, which is scheduled to begin filming in the fall. The magazine also reported that creative differences may have also been a factor in Butler’s exit.
Alcon is reportedly attempting to recast the role without adjusting the June start date.
Scottish actor Gerard Butler is in final negotiations to star in a remake of the 1990 Keanu Reeves surf classic Point Break, The Hollywood Reporter is reporting.
The remake will retain the same plot and character names as the original, but will be set against the world of extreme surfing rather than the normal, non-extreme variety. So, expect to see 100-foot waves instead of 10-foot waves.
Butler previously surfed 100-foot waves in 2012’s Chasing Mavericks.
Butler will play Bodhi, an extreme sports enthusiast who saves the life of Johnny Utah, an undercover FBI agent, then introduces him to the world of organized crime. The part of Utah has not yet been cast. In the original film, Bodhi was portrayed by Patrick Swayze while the part of Utah went to Keanu Reeves.
The film will be directed by Ericson Core, who is best known for his work as a cinematographer on the original Fast and the Furious and Daredevil.