Chris Rock, Jamie Foxx & Idris Elba Reportedly In The Mix For Paul Feig's Remake Of French Hit 'Intouchables'

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by Kevin Jagernauth
June 19, 2012 9:25 AM
6 Comments

A smash hit in its native France, an arthouse sensation on this side of the ocean, and nominated for 9 Cesar awards, it's not a shock that The Weinstein Company (who distributed the original stateside) are eager to remake "Intouchables" for what they hope is an awards season contender. "Bridesmaids" director Paul Feig and Colin Firth are already set to team up on the movie -- titled "Untouchable" en anglais -- about a wealthy quadriplegic who finds a new reason to live thanks to a plucky urban caretaker. That latter role is the one that landed Omar Sy a Best Actor Cesar over favored nominee Jean Dujardin for "The Artist." And now, a trio of actors are hoping they can duplicate that success in English.

The New York Post (via Shadow & Act) reports that among those circling the role are Chris Rock, Jamie Foxx and Idris Elba. Frankly, they are all pretty solid choices. Rock has proven he can toe that line between drama and comedy -- he's pretty great in Julie Delpy's "2 Days In New York" -- while the Oscar winner Foxx also seems like a no brainer. Elba could be the outside shot here, but his profile is rising day by day, and with blockbuster fare like "Thor 2" and "Pacific Rim" on the horizon -- not to mention the acclaim he already has from turns in "Luther" and "The Wire" -- becoming a household name isn't too far away.

Of course, none of these guys could wind up joining the cast as it all comes down to scheduling, interest and a variety of other boring factors. No word yet on when this will even roll, and with Firth kicking off production on Atom Egoyan's "The Devil's Knot" next week, it will at least have to wait until that has wrapped. But if Harvey can snag a big name that he likes to co-star, you can bet he will want this one to get moving sooner rather than later, so we'll have to see how it all plays out.

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More: Untouchable, Chris Rock, Idris Elba, Jamie Foxx, Colin Firth

6 Comments

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Rebecca | June 19, 2012 2:45 PMReply

This makes no sense, the movie just came out this year? Why can't Hollywood be ORIGINAL!!! Ugh, and now it will probably do horribly, ruining a black actors shot because Hollywood will ultimately screw it up.
Cinematic_high | June 19, 2012 2:32 PMReply

No no no! What the fuck? Fuck an English remake.....or any remake for that matter! Another bad idea from Hollywood.....thanks!
Mike | June 19, 2012 12:17 PMReply

No wonder The Weinstein Company has barely released Intouchables here in the United States, they're giving it the littlest amount of due diligence & hoping people here never hear about it so they can pimp out a remake. It's the same crap pulled on Infernal Affairs when The Departed was in the offing.
Tyler | June 19, 2012 11:27 AMReply

Feig directed Elba in two Office episodes, "New Boss" and "Dream Team". So, it's possible that Elba will get the role.
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Jack | June 19, 2012 9:33 AMReply

I like Elba and Rock but I'm not really sure that either one of them could play that character or have really played a character like that.