Will lead the martial arts remake…
While out promoting his upcoming release, July 25th’s ‘The Purge: Anarchy,’ actor Frank Grillo has revealed that he has is set to star in the English-language remake of martial arts actioner ‘The Raid.’
The cult Indonesian original, directed by Welsh filmmaker Gareth Huw Evans, follows an elite SWAT team tasked with raiding a rundown apartment block in Jakarta that is filled with the world’s most dangerous killers and gangsters. But when a chance encounter with a spotter blows their cover and news of their assault reaches the drug lord that runs the block, the building’s lights are cut and all the exits blocked.
Confirming his involvement to WeGotThisCovered, Grillo said, “What people don’t know is that I’m a blackbelt in jujitsu, which I’ve been for 20 years, and I’ve been boxing since I’ve been 15 years old – those are things that come natural to me. Believe it or not, I just got hired to do [the remake of] The Raid…I loved [the original]…we’ve got to do this justice. It’s a fanboy favourite.”
Filming was to begin in September, but delays in casting resulted in production being pushed back to January 2015. Australian director Patrick Hughes (‘The Expendables 3,’ ‘Red Hill’) is behind the camera, with the script coming from Brad Ingelsby (‘Run All Night,’ ‘Out of the Furnace’).
Grillo’s previous credits include ‘Warrior,’ ‘End of Watch,’ ‘The Grey’ and, most recently, ‘Captain America: The Winter Soldier.’