I could think of many roles I'd be more than happy to see Will Smith play. He makes a perfectly fine ladies man, fighter pilot, gay criminal...whatever. What I don't want to see him do is the mentally challenged Charlie in an adaptation of Flowers for Algernon. Is this some sort of karmic retribution because I cheered when his Oldboy remake flamed out?
Smith would be teaming up with Gabriele Muccino, who directed The Pursuit of Happyness and the oh my god it burns with awfulness Seven Pounds. Here's hoping this turns out better than that terrible bid for Oscar credibility.
Flowers for Algernon is the controversial(still don't understand why) book by Daniel Keyes, about a mentally challenged man who signs up for an experiment that turns him into a genius. Algernon is the mouse that Charlie's intelligence is initially measured against, and serves as the parallel to how his life eventually ends up.
No word yet on a start date, but if they want to make this really interesting? Have the Fresh Prince play Algernon.
