Hey, remember Motor City? That's the vengeance thriller from Black List scribe Chad St. John that somehow managed to piss off the casting gods? We've seen everybody from Dominic Cooper to Jake Gyllenhaal to Jeremy Renner and Clive Owen attached to the lead role, and all have come and gone. Gerard Butler moved into the spot back in March, immediately killing any of the high hopes any of us had for the film. And to add insult to injury, Gary Oldman and Amber Heard, who might have given the cast some real gravitas, left back in June. Well now there's a little bit of reason to get excited again.
Mickey Rourke has joined the film in what will likely be the villain role Oldman vacated. Deadline doesn't say the role he'll be playing one way or another, but it seems like a natural fit. Directed by Albert Hughes, the story centers on a petty crook who is framed and sent to prison, only to get out and start seeking a little revenge. In the meantime, his girl has hooked up with the crime boss who put him behind bars, and he has to try and get her back, too. The cool part, and perhaps the one thing that may make Butler a solid choice, is that the lead character only has one line of dialogue for the entire movie.
I feel bad for Hughes, who has done nothing but face casting woes for the last two years(remember Akira?). Maybe the combination of Butler and Rourke will help set Motor City back on the right course.
