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Christian Bale Circling Villain Role in Spike Lee's Remake of 'Oldboy'?

by Ethan Anderton
August 24, 2011
Source: Variety

Currently he's busy shooting one of the most anticipated sequels in the past decade with The Dark Knight Rises. However, what's actor Christian Bale doing after taking off the cape for his last go round as Batman with director Christopher Nolan? We've already heard talk about his involvement in Zack Snyder's The Last Photograph (though he doesn't seem to be involved anymore), Concrete Island with Brad Anderson and maybe Noah with Darren Aronofsky. But now the actor is also considering taking parts in two remakes: Spike Lee's new take on Oldboy, and the remake of A Star is Born from Clint Eastwood.

Variety also points out that Bale is also considering taking a role in Crazy Heart writer and director Scott Cooper's new thriller Out of the Furnace. That film would see him as a man named Slim who, upon release from years in prison for murder, just wants to keep his promise to marry his girlfriend. However, his path changes when he seeks revenge once he learns his brother was murdered after being involved in a gambling racket. Sounds like another unique role for Bale to take on, something the actor has made a habit of despite his success in blockbuster films.

In addition, there's a chance that Bale could also re-team with Public Enemies director Michael Mann and writer Paul Haggis for their collaboration Gold. Complete with flares of films like Treasure of the Sierra Madre (but with a contemporary setting) the story follows prospectors and speculators on the ruthless search for gold and comes from Patrick Massett and John Zinman (co-executive producers of "Friday Night Lights" and "The Chicago Code") who first wrote the spec script as a feature writing sample. Once again, another project that seems fitting  yet fresh for Bale.

However, my interest lies in the two remakes he's considering. First of all, if there are any naysayers not yet on board to check out Spike Lee's remake of Oldboy, I think an actor like Bale would definitely change some minds and turns some heads. But almost as intriguing is Bale's consideration for A Star is Born. It hasn't yet been made clear if this film will be a straight musical like the 1954 version, but if that's the case, the film would have Bale singing his heart out for the first time since his much younger self belted out tunes in Newsies, a favorite musical of mine.

Of course, the trade is careful to point out that Bale is not formally attached to any of these projects, nor is he actually considered to be the frontrunner for any of the lead roles. Apparently they're just all scripts that have likely ended up in Bale's lap and he may have had some fleeting discussions about them with various executives, filmmakers, etc. Honestly, if Bale took on Oldboy or A Star is Born, those would seem to be the most interesting choices to follow The Dark Knight Rises, but we'll have to wait and see what happens. What do you think?

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Related categories: Casting, Movie News, Rumors