Kurt Russell is pissed and he doesn’t care who knows it. During an interview with Entertainment Weekly to pimp his upcoming movie Grindhouse, Russell was asked about the plans for a remake of Escape From New York. Let’s just say that Kurt is definitely in the “do as I say and not as a I do” school when it comes to remakes. He can act in remakes all he wants (Vanilla Sky, Posideon), but his original movies are, seemingly, sacrosanct.
Russell claims that I didn't play Snake Plissken, I created him!....I am Snake Plissken . Referring to rumors that 300 star (and Scotsman) Gerard Butler will play Plissken in the remake, Russell came up with a unique argument, “I do think that character was quintessentially one thing. And that is, American.” I always thought the character was quintessentially a guy with an eye patch who carried a gun. He dismissed the idea that he’d do a cameo in the remake and compared himself to Sean Connery watching someone else do James Bond.
I’ve always been a huge fan of Kurt Russell, not just as an actor but as a person. He never seemed to end up in the tabloids or act like he knew more about politics just because he made movies. But I think is whole “I created him!” thing doesn’t resonate with me. That’s the case with almost any movie that gets remade. You don’t hear Walter Matthau complaining because he created a part later remade by Billy Bob Thornton. That’s mostly because he’s dead, but still (he is dead, right?) Time to get over it Kurt and if you’re tempted to star in the remake of The Towering Inferno, remember what you said today.
