Kevin Hart Joins Colin Firth in 'The Intouchables' Remake

A remake of the French smash hit comedy, The Intouchables, has been in the works for quite awhile, and a major sticking point has been finding someone to take the role previously occupied by Omar Sy. Colin Firth has long been attached to the other lead, while Chris Tucker, Jamie Foxx, Chris Rock, and even Idris Elba were looked at to join the Paul Feig-scripted comedy.  But now French site Allocine is reporting that Kevin Hart has won the role.

The Intouchables was released three years ago and quickly became an international phenomenon, voted "the cultural event" of the year in France and earning Omar Sy a Cesar Award for his performance. The film chronicles the unlikely friendship between a wealthy quadriplegic and his spirited Senegalese caretaker.  The news of Hart's casting was apparently revealed by Olivier Nakache, a co-director on the original film.

What's still unclear is who will be behind the camera. Feig worked on the screenplay and was circling the directing job for awhile but never seemed to commit. It was Tom Shadyac (Bruce Almighty) who looked to be the frontrunner as of last year but nothing has been heard since. If the main cast is now in place presumably we'll be hearing more about Weinstein's plans for The Intouchables soon, but it would seem that casting Hart would remove the story's pointed commentary on immigration. But that's okay because we'll get to see what Hart can do with this scene...

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Omar Sy Books a Trip to 'Jurassic World'

After winning over the hearts of millions, and earning a Cesar Award, for his performance in the French comedy The Intouchables, Omar Sy has made a smooth transition into Hollywood blockbusters. He'll appear as Bishop in X-men: Days of Future Past this summer, and now he's just booked himself a trip to Jurassic World.

Sy has joined Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard, Jake Johnson, Ty Simpkins, Nick Robinson, Vincent D'onofrio, and the returning BD Wong in the dino sequel/reboot. Some sites are also confirming the previously-rumored Idris Elba as part of the story but there's no mention of him in THR's report. Elba has denied the rumors in the past and we'll update this post if that has changed. As for Sy, his role is unclear but he seems enthusiastic about the gig...

Fan of this saga from the beginning, I’m very proud to be part of the cast for JURASSIC WORLD #jurassicworld @UniversalPics @colintrevorrow
— Omar SY (@OmarSy) March 21, 2014

Jurassic World is directed by Colin Trevorrow and opens June 15th 2015.

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Chris Rock, Idris Elba, and Jamie Foxx circling the lead in 'The Intouchables' remake

The Intouchables wasn't just a comedy hit in its native France, it proved to be a global phenomenon nobody could have expected. Voted the "cultural event" of the year in France, the film(my review here) tells the story of an unlikely friendship struck between Philippe, a wealthy quadriplegic, and Driss, his streetwise Senegalese caretaker. Released here in America only a few weeks ago by The Weinstein Company, it's proven to be something of a success here as well, so it was no surprise when we learned a remake was in the works. Paul Feig(Bridesmaids) has been attached to direct the film, titled simply Untouchable, with Colin Firth circling the rich guy role, originally played by Franocis Cluzet.

However, it's the role of Driss that has drawn the most controversy for being a little too clownish and...dare I say coonish for American audiences to accept. Even in my review I note that the role, and much of the humor, would have to be tweaked for American audiences. The first step in doing that comes down to casting, and The New York Post states that Chris Rock, Jamie Foxx, and Idris Elba are all circling the role. I thought Omar Sy was so good, so approachable and charming in the role that he could conceivably play it himself, but The Weinsteins clearly have eyes on a bigger star. Off the bat, none of them seem like good choices for different reasons, but one they all share is that they are each simply too old.  Part of what makes the bond between Driss and Philippe so uncommon is their age disparity, with the former's youthful vigor inspiring his stuffy friend to embrace life once again. Out of these three, Elba would be the best choice, but it's just as likely none of them take the role. We shall see.

Michelle Williams and Jessica Chastain are being sought for the female lead role, although I'm not sure which character they mean. I can only assume it's that of Philippe's house assistant, who Driss spends the bulk of the film hitting on. They're too young for pretty much every other female part in the story.

None of this has been confirmed yet, and I hardly count The New York Post as a reliable source for information on anything, so take this with a grain of salt.

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