The Lion King is coming later this month, marking the third live-action remake of a Disney classic to arrive from the House of Mouse this year. With Mulan on the way next year and The Little Mermaid having just cast its lead, you can be sure that there are many more coming down the pipeline as well. In fact, it seems that one of those gaining steam could be Hercules.
We Got This Covered has heard that Disney is working on a live-action Hercules and is eyeing Alexander Skarsgard for the title role. Our source tells us that he’s on the wishlist but there’s been no auditioning process just yet, so it’s far from confirmed. As can be expected based on previous remakes though, the new film will be very similar in plot to the 1997 original.
In terms of who’s making it, we’ve been informed that Disney’s looking for writers and directors who might be considered “outside the box” choices. Presumably, this move’s inspired by their recent Aladdin remake. Guy Ritchie was an unlikely pick to helm the musical but the film went down a smash, so the studio’s probably hoping to repeat that success.
A previous rumor did the rounds in June that said Alexander Ludwig (The Hunger Games) was the top pick for the role with Aquaman‘s Amber Heard playing Megara and Benedict Cumberbatch as Hades. However, our source didn’t mention any of those names when they spoke to us and as such, it appears as if the studio’s now heading in another direction.
In any case, we know that other live-action remakes on the way include Snow White, a 101 Dalmatians prequel called Cruella starring Emma Stone and a new Hunchback of Notre Dame possibly featuring Josh Gad. As for Hercules, it sounds like it’s still early, early days but as always, we’ll keep you posted once we hear more.
