Deadline has announced that Universal has cast Lupin‘s Omar Sy in the lead role for John Woo ’s reimagining of his 1989 crime drama The Killer for Peacock.
The original film written and directed by Woo watches as the disillusioned assassin Ah Jong (Chow Yun-fat) accepts one last hit, in hopes of using his earnings to restore vision to the singer (Sally Yeh) he accidentally blinded. Details as to the reimagining’s plot have not been disclosed. But Woo returns to direct the pic announced earlier this year as one of three Universal originals set to debut on Peacock in 2023. He also serves as its producer.
The screenplay was written by writing partners Matthew Stuecken and Josh Campbell (10 Cloverfield Lane ), as well as Eran Creevy (Welcome to the Punch , Collide ) and Brian Helgeland (42 , Legend ). Universal Pictures’ Senior Vice President of Production Development Sara Scott and Creative Development Executive Jacqueline Garell are overseeing the project on behalf of the studio.
Sy is a French actor who rocketed to international stardom with his performance in The Intouchables , which led him to become the first Black thesp to win the César for Best Actor. He currently stars in Netflix’s Lupin , one of the streamer’s most watched non-English language series, which has been renewed for a third installment.
