Family man Bruce Willis becomes a crazed vigilante in the new Death Wish trailer from MGM. Eli Roth directed the revenge drama, a remake/reboot of 1974’s Death Wish with Charles Bronson. Originally slated for release in late 2017, the film was recently bumped to 2018.
1974’s Death Wish starred Bronson as an architect who became an urban vigilante after the death of his wife at the hands of street punks. Michael Winner’s ultra-violent film scored at the box office, spawning a whole series of increasingly schlocky sequels. Death Wish has also inspired decades of homages, rip-offs and parodies. The basic formula – angry man killing people to avenge/protect his family – lives to this day through Liam Neeson’s Taken series. If you’re an older actor looking for a good retirement plan franchise, just pick up a gun and blast some bad guys who messed with your family.
Related: Death Wish Trailer: Bruce Willis Is A Vigilante
MGM has released the second trailer for Eli Roth’s Death Wish, starring Bruce Willis as the archetypal urban vigilante. Willis plays surgeon Paul Kersey, whose world comes apart after a brutal attack on his wife (Elisabeth Shue) and daughter (Camila Morrone). The cops can’t/won’t do anything about the crime, so Willis takes matters into his own hands. As you can well imagine, things get very violent. See the video above.
The trailer promises exactly what you would expect from a Death Wish remake starring Bruce Willis – namely, a lot of the star looking slightly sleepy, then suddenly getting angry and dishing out pain to bad guys. Given Eli Roth’s willingness to ratchet up the violence in his movies to insane degrees, expect this one to go a lot farther than what they’ve shown in the trailer. Action veteran Joe Carnahan wrote the script, so the plot should be sturdy. The supporting cast includes reliable character actors Dean Norris and Vincent D’Onofrio.
Eli Roth said in a recent interview he hopes Death Wish can help Bruce Willis mount a comeback. Once a hugely bankable action star, Willis has recently fallen on hard times career-wise. His last Die Hard movie, 2013’s A Good Day to Die Hard, only did so-so domestically though it did perform well overseas. Otherwise, Willis has mostly been churning out forgettable B-grade action fare. Willis does also have M. Night Shyamalan’s Glass forthcoming, in which he will reprise the role of David Dunn. Between Glass and Death Wish, perhaps Willis can enjoy a late career renaissance. Rumors also persist that Die Hard will get a prequel called Die Hard Year One that explores the origin story of John McClane.
More: Death Wish First Look Images: Bruce Willis Is Out for Revenge
Key Release Dates
Death Wish
Release Date:2018-03-02
