David Ayer to Write and Direct ‘The Dirty Dozen’ Remake
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Warner Bros. is reteaming with “Suicide Squad” director David Ayer on a contemporary remake of the classic war pic “The Dirty Dozen.” Ayer will write and direct a retelling of the World War II film.
Simon Kinberg is producing the movie as is Ayer and Chris Long’s production company Cedar Park Entertainment with Long serving as an exec producer.
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The original 1967 war film was helmed by Robert Aldrich and featured an all-star ensemble that included Lee Marvin, Ernest Borgnine, Charles Bronson, Jim Brown, John Cassavetes, Telly Savalas, Robert Webber and Donald Sutherland. Based on the E.M. Nathanson novel, the film centered on a top-secret mission before the Normandy Invasion, where a group of hardened Army prisoners were trained to conduct a suicide mission — to stage an assault on a chateau in Brittany, where dozens of high-ranking German officers were meeting.
The movie will be set in the present day with a similar storyline as the original, focusing on a rag-tag group of soldiers.
Ayer and Warner Bros. last worked together on the first “Suicide Squad” pic, which earned almost $750 million worldwide in 2016. Since then, Ayer has helmed the Netflix thriller “Bright,” reuniting him with his “Suicide Squad” star Will Smith. Netflix immediately put a sequel into development.
He most recently directed the thriller “The Tax Collector,” which reteamed him with “Fury” star Shia LaBeouf. Ayer is repped by WME.
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