Dwayne Johnson responds to the Big Trouble in Little China remake backlash

Last Updated on August 5, 2021

I think it's safe to say that the bulk of you weren't too keen on last week's announcement that Dwayne Johnson would be involved with a remake of the 80s cult-classic BIG TROUBLE IN LITTLE CHINA. Sure, that movie didn't exactly make waves upon its initial release, but the classic John Carpenter/Kurt Russell duo gave that movie some legs that has since run into the hearts of cinephiles everywhere. Very few remakes are worth anyone's time and the good news is that Dwayne Johnson is remaining very conscious of this. Speaking with Entertainment Weekly, he addressed the backlash as well as what he hopes to accomplish with this remake.

I loved reading the reactions from the fans, that they were so polarized – I’m the same way. My response is: know that I come to the project with nothing but love and respect for the original, which is why we want to bring on John Carpenter.

I loved the original when I was younger and I loved the main character – all the characters. It felt like if we surrounded ourselves with the right group of people, the right writers who loved the movie too and wanted to honor it, bring on John Carpenter in some capacity . . . If we did that, then we have a shot at hopefully making something good.

Let’s see what feels good, what we can come up with and then go from there. And as we write it, if the whole thing starts to stink up, then we thank everybody for their efforts and accept this just couldn’t make it.

Dwayne Johnson has always been a charismatic guy and I believe him when he says he means to do right with this project. There's no harm in writing a script to see what comes of it, and I doubt any studio would put that much pressure on getting this remade (as opposed to, say, POLTERGEIST). I'd be curious to see what Carpenter and Russell would have to say on the matter given their distaste for the ESCAPE FROM NEW YORK remake that's never really made it off the ground.

It's going to be tough to deliver those one-liners as well as Kurt Russell!