The 1993 blockbuster climbing-thriller trades a muscled-up Sylvester Stallone for a to-be-named female lead and heads to Cannes to secure funding.
You don’t have to like climbing to enjoy the over-the-top, Sly Stallone epic “Cliffhanger.” In fact, it’s probably better if you don’t because the movie has about as much authenticity to climbing as “Jaws” does to marine biology.
But the formulaic hit that briefly cast big-wall free climbing in the limelight decades before “Free Solo” won its Oscar now hopes to capitalize on the sport’s surging popularity. Last week, Deadline reported that entertainment company Rocket Science won the movie rights and secured acclaimed director Ana Lily Amirpour.
Not only that, but Amipour — who won multiple awards for “A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night” — and Rocket Science promised a female lead and are at the Cannes Film Festival this week to nail down full production assets.
Cliffhanger Movie Reboot Hits Preproduction
As it currently sits in preproduction, nobody knows much about the “Cliffhanger” reboot’s plot or cast yet. But “Aquaman” star and avid climber Jason Mamoa is rumored to have a cameo role.
Additionally, Neil Moritz will be among the film’s producers. Moritz helped cultivate the massively popular (and successful) “The Fast and the Furious” franchise.
It’s unclear if this new “Cliffhanger” will rely on near-impossible stunts and flashy visuals as its predecessor did. But with Amirpour and an intentionally female focus, it appears the film may lean more on real drama and identifiable characters.
Either way, the film’s backers will hope to replicate the original’s more-than-three-fold box office return. Over its run, the 1993 movie raked in $255 million from its $70 million budget.
