Gerard Butler boards action thriller The Plane

Last Updated on July 30, 2021

THIS…IS…ECONOMY CLASS!

Perennial action star Gerard Butler (LAW ABIDING CITIZEN) has found his next starring vehicle and it looks like he'll be spending plenty of time in the cockpit. The forty-nine year old Scottish actor has just signed on to star in the aptly titled action film THE PLANE. While the title is relatively vanilla, the plot sounds like it has at least a dollop of whip cream on it. Butler will play commercial pilot Ray Torrance who, "after a heroic job of successfully landing his storm-damaged aircraft in a war zone, finds himself caught between the agendas of multiple militia who are planning to take the plane and its passengers’ hostage." The movie comes courtesy of screenwriters Charles Cumming and J.P. Davis, based on the former's book.

This seems like your typical standard fare for Butler. He's made a name for himself over the last decade or so, beginning with films like 300 and continuing with the successful HAS FALLEN series. It's definitely his niche and if anyone can do the lone-man-thrown-into-an-impossible-situation routine it's Gerard Butler.

Seriously though, they've gotta come up with a better title than THE PLANE. There's been plenty of great actioners set on commercial aircraft with inspired titles, including Liam Neeson's NON-STOP and Wesley Snipes' PASSENGER 57. I'm sure Di Bonaventura Pictures, the company producing the film, can think of a title that's not simply a signifier for the machine you are traveling in.

No director is attached at this time but the film is set to start shooting in Spring 2020.