The Killer: First-look images at John Woo’s remake of his own iconic action movie

IGN got the exclusive first look at The Killer, John Woo’s upcoming remake of his own 1989 action classic. This new version stars Nathalie Emmanuel as Zee, a mysterious assassin known as the Queen of the Dead. When she refuses to kill a young blind woman (Diana Silvers) on the orders of her handler, Finn (Sam Worthington), her world implodes, and she finds herself on the run, attracting the attention of police investigator Sy (Omar Sy).

You can check out three first-look images from The Killer below.

“[Zee] has a very specific code in how she likes to do things,” Emmanuel told IGN. “And when she’s told who and when to kill somebody, she does it in her own specific way. And her dilemma in this movie is that she’s being asked to kill somebody who she doesn’t believe deserves it. And for some reason she can’t believe that they deserve to be killed …“

“I like Sy because he’s a loyal cop playing by his own rules to make real justice and really do it with all his heart,” Sy said. “It’s more about instinct and feelings, you know? He’s the good guy, but sometimes he can cross the line to do what is best. That was very interesting for me.“

Of course, both actors are big fans of John Woo and the original version of The Killer. “I love the original movie,” Emmanuel said. “I’ve seen it more than a couple of times. (John Woo) was an innovator of action, in my opinion. And just really cared about not just the action, and the sort of excitement and the spectacle of the action, but really cares about the characters and their emotional dilemma as you put it. And so it’s an excellent movie. I’ve seen a lot of John’s movies. I’m a massive fan of Face/Off. I think it’s one of my favorites of his, and Mission: Impossible 2 is obviously fantastic.” You can check out more of the interview on IGN.

The Killer remake, directed by John Woo from a script by Brian Helgeland, will stream exclusively on Peacock on August 23rd.