By Ron Wynn
NASHVILLE, TN — Oscar winners Spike Lee and Denzel Washington have worked together on four previous projects, most recently “Inside Man” in 2006. Last week it was announced that the duo are joining forces once more, this time to reimagine a classic Akira Kurosawa crime drama. They’re collaborating on a remake of the 1963 epic “High and Low” for both Apple and A24. Past joint Lee/Washington projects have also included “Malcolm X” and “He Got Game.” Filming is scheduled to begin in March. The original film was based on Ed McBain’s novel “King’s Ransom,” and it featured Toshiro Mifune as a wealthy man whose fortune is depleted after he pays the after p ransom for a kidnapping. McBain’s novel was also reportedly the inspiration for Steven Soderbergh’s 2023 miniseries “Full Circle.”
Kurosawa has long been one of Lee’s cinematic heroes. He has publicly cited “Rashomon” as a major influence on the 1986 film “She’s Gotta Have It.”
The remake will be released theatrically by A24 before heading to Apple TV+, following a similar route to “The Tragedy of Macbeth,” which scored Washington a best actor Oscar nomination. The script is being written by Alan Fox, a former college basketball player and model turned playwright. Fox also appeared in the Taylor Swift video “Fifteen.” His script “Queens of the Stoned Age,” about a model who becomes a weed dealer, is now a Sony project with Dakota Johnson named as principal star.
Washington’s most recent film, “The Equalizer 3,” completed the trilogy. It has made $191 million worldwide to date. He’s also set to star alongside Paul Mescal in “Gladiator 2” for director Ridley Scott.
Lee’s last film was 2020’s “Da 5 Bloods.” The production team includes Escape Artists Todd Black and Mandalay Pictures’ Michael Berman. Lee will also serve as executive producer under his company, 40 Acres And A Mule Filmworks, with Mandalay Pictures’ top brass, Peter Gruber. Matthew Lindner, Chris Brigham, and Katia Washington are also executive producing for Juniper Productions, with Mandalay Pictures’ Jordan Moldo as co-producer. An additional Washington future project is Antoine Fuqua’s upcoming epic about Carthaginian General Hannibal. But no production or release date has yet been released regarding that one.
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