For its next live-action remake, Disney is heading to ancient Greece for a revamp of its 1997 animated musical “Hercules”.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Disney Studios has tapped screenwriter Dave Callaham — who wrote the screenplay for Marvel’s upcoming “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings” — to write the script, while “Avengers: Endgame” directors Joe and Anthony Russo will produce.
After news broke about the film, “Pitch Perfect” star Skylar Astin publicly auditioned for the part of Hercules, sharing a video of himself singing “Go the Distance” from the original animated film.
This isn’t the first time recently that Astin has covered a Disney classic. Last month he shared a performance of the song “Out There” from “The Hunchback of Notre Dame”.
Rumours of a live-action “Hercules” remake have seen simmering for awhile, but were sparked anew when Ariana Grande selected the “Hercules” tune “I Won’t Say I’m in Love” for her entry in “The Disney Family Singalong”, even insisting “Hercules” is her favourite all Disney’s animated movies.
Following Grande’s performance, numerous fans took to social media to point out the ponytailed pop star bears a striking resemblance to Hercules’ love interest Meg, with calls to cast her in the role in the event of a live-action remake.
While Grande has yet to comment on the news, “Glee” star Amber Riley is already pitching herself as one of the movie’s musical Muses.
“Ellen DeGeneres Show” regular Kalen Allen would also love to be involved, responding to Riley’s tweet by asking if she’ll “put in a good word for me!”
Meanwhile, check out more reaction to news of Disney’s live-action “Hercules”, with fans throwing out their own casting suggestions.
