A press release today announced that the long-awaited big-screen update of the popular series "The A-Team" will be hitting screens in summer 2009.
It’s been the subject of ‘dream casting’ among movie fans for years now, but it finally looks as though Fox is moving ahead with it’s plan to make a modern, big-screen version of “The A-Team”, the 80’s action TV show which made Mr. T a worldwide superstar. “Boyz ‘N’ the Hood” director John Singleton, who brought the character of Shaft up to date in his 2000 movie, will be directing the action film, which Fox have pencilled in for a June 12, 2009 release date. Stephen J. Cannell, who produced the original series, will be overseeing the movie as well.
Dream Team
A modern version of the cast has often been debated amongst movie fans. It’s widely believed to be a tough film to cast, given that the original actors made the roles their own, particularly the role of B.A. Baracus, immortalised by Mr. T, but also the late George Peppard’s performance as the team’s leader, Col. ‘Hannibal’ Smith. During the mid-to-late 90’s a new version was rumoured, with Mel Gibson as ‘Hannibal’, but the rumours never materialised and the story was forgotten. That is, until last year when production rolled forward on this current incarnation.
With Peppard gone (the actor passed away in 1994), and the rest of the cast presumably too old to return to their parts, who would play the modern ‘A-Team’? Two big rumours flying around the Internet (and listed on imdb.com) are, firstly, Woody Harrelson as ‘Howlin’ Mad’ Murdock, the team’s pilot, and Singleton favourite Ice Cube in the role of Baracus. It should be stressed, however, that these are rumours and at this point in time no casting announcements have been made. As for plot, it's assumed the team will be updated to present day, which would mean changing their backstory slightly, as in the series they were Vietnam veterans.
Fan Favourites
It’s believed a big motivation behind the project was the reaction to a British TV show called “Bring Back The A-Team”, where presenter Justin Lee Collins tracked down the surviving members of the cast, talked over their experiences and held a reunion to which all the actors he could trace were invited. One of the people he tracked down was Cannell, who was surprised at the following the show still had and it is rumoured that was a motivating factor behind getting this version made. Whether or not it will please that following remains to be seen, but expect the announcements to come thick and fast as the pre-production continues…
