While Joe and Anthony Russo are taking a sabbatical from the Marvel Cinematic Universe, they are still collaborating with Disney on the live-action Hercules remake, which is expected to draw some inspiration from contemporary culture.
The Crossover we didn’t ask for but we needed
The Russo brothers recognized critiques of some recent Disney remakes in an interview with Variety, particularly regarding how safe these translations play out with little deviance from the original films.
Joe Russo claims that their Hercules remake is “a little bit more adventurous” in tone and execution when discussing their idea.
Russo queries Variety, “Audiences nowadays have been schooled by TikTok, right?” This can be a lot of fun and help us stretch the limits of how you execute a modern musical a little bit. “What is their anticipation of what that musical looks like and feels like?”
This isn’t the first time that contemporary examples of the live-action Hercules have been mentioned.
The 1997 Disney blockbuster was acclaimed for being “funny” and “subversive,” and the remake aims to replicate that spirit, according to Joe Russo, who stated in July that it will “pay homage to the original with a more modern take on it.”
In recent years, Disney has given many classics the treatment, including adaptations of Beauty and the Beast, The Lion King, and other works. Another of those, Aladdin, was directed by Ritchie back in 2019.