Kurt Russell on the Big Trouble in Little China remake: “Good Luck”

Last Updated on August 2, 2021

I think it's safe to say that John Carpenter's BIG TROUBLE IN LITTLE CHINA is a beloved cult classic, so when news came that Dwayne Johnson was going to produce and star in a remake of the film, fans were noticeably annoyed by this development. In fact, the backlash was so severe that Dwayne Johnson himself felt he had to respond by reassuring fans of his love and respect for the original film. Johnson also revealed that he would be bringing John Carpenter on-board in some capacity, but that if the whole thing started to "stink up", they would move on and call it a day.

While fans were glad to hear that their criticism's were being heard, they remained skeptical; as does the star of BIG TROUBLE IN LITTLE CHINA, the one and only Kurt Russell. The actor spoke with Collider during a press-tour for BONE TOMAHAWK and, while he questions their reasons for remaking the film, wished them luck:

You know, I heard they were gonna remake Big Trouble in Little China, I heard they were gonna make Overboard, they were gonna remake some Disney stuff. I mean, I don’t know, I guess it’s that time now. Hey, you know, nothing sacred, why not? Go get it, good luck. I always think it’s interesting what’s gonna be done. Dwayne Johnson, I don’t know what his take on it is gonna be, I don’t know what they’re gonna do. I always look at those movies when I see a remake and it’s like, “Ok… there’s gotta be a reason." With Big Trouble in Little China John and I, I know we did something that at that time was –The sensibility of that movie was very different, no movie had been made like that, and virtually you flip-flopped the leading man and the [sidekick], you flip-flopped those roles, that had never been done. And a lot of the humor and the style of that movie was brand new for that time and was very much copied after that, so in its way Big Trouble is definitely a cult film. So I don’t know what their reasons are for remaking the movie but I hope that they have the right reasons and I hope that they do it well and good luck, what can I say? I don’t know, I don’t have thoughts other than that. Hang in there, good luck, go get em'.

Like Russell, I continue to question what can be gained by remaking the film, but I've always found Dwayne Johnson completely watchable, no matter the quality of film he's in, so if anyone is going to remake BIG TROUBLE IN LITTLE CHINA, I'm glad it's him. However, when it comes to remaking anything, especially when you're dealing with a much-loved original, please make it different; take the foundation of the original but do something new with it, give us something which stands apart so we're not endlessly comparing the two as I doubt many of us want to see the films we love simply updated with a modern sheen and an overabundance of CG. Of course, Hollywood could always choose to pursue more original projects but…yeah.