Coen Brothers Remaking 'True Grit'

Variety is reporting something of an out-of-the-blue bombshell: Joel and Ethan Coen will adapt the western novel True Grit as their next film following this year's A Serious Man. Paramount will distribute the film, which will more closely resemble Charles Portis' novel than the 1969 film that won John Wayne his only Academy Award. That means a primary shift in the film's point of view from the aging lawman on the hunt for a murderer in Indian terrtiory to a teenage girl whose father is the killer's victim. The original film also starred Kim Darby, Robert Duvall, Dennis Hopper, Glen Campbell, and Jeff Corey. Wayne would later reprise his character in Rooster Cogburn. The Coens had been prepping an adaptation of Michael Chabon's The Yiddish Policemen's Union as their next project, but True Grit will now replace it at the head of the line. The West is not new territory for the Coens, having walked away with a few Academy Awards Oscars for their Cormac McCarthy adaptation, No Country for Old Men. It's also not their first remake, although one hopes this is more satisfying than The Ladykillers.Even though this is technically not a remake of the movie, you can't really go into John Wayne territory without comparisons, and the question begs to be asked: Just who will play Rooster Cogburn? My money's on Tommy Lee Jones at the moment.

Comments

[Michael]

John Wayne fans around the world need to unite and boycott this horrible attempt at re-doing a John Wayne movie. No one can stand toe-to-toe with Duke Wayne. I will not go see this piece of trash. The Cohn Bros. should try something else because real John Wayne fans will not bother to go see this abomination. There is and always will be only (1) John Wayne, American. Accept no substitutes.

[Ray]

Why? I thought these guys are brilliant story tellers and fantastic film makers to boot, but come on, what is remake business going on in Hollywood? You are telling me that Joel and Ethan can't find one decent ORIGINAL script to produce? This stinks like "The Ladykillers" stunk! And since the article mentions Tommy Lee Jones, didn't he already attempt to fill the Duke's boots with that Ron Howard pseudo remake of "The Searchers" called "The Missing"? Tommy Lee Jones, walk away brother, just walk away. Go mend to your ranch instead of wasting three months of your life in a remake!