Taika Waititi has proven incapable of adapting comic book films. Why does Hollywood keep giving him a shot?
Judge Dredd is a poorly understood franchise. The UK comic book superhero, a flagship character of the 2000 AD stable, faces down horrific villains with brutal intent. His thirst for the law and the means to enforce it make him the embodiment of his chilling persona as judge, jury, and executioner. However, apart from one adaptation, thanks to Karl Urban, it’s been hard to love the strongman actor of law enforcement. There’s a new movie in the works, and unfortunately, Taika Waititi is in charge. Oh boy!
Wrong Director, Wrong Genre
While Taika Waititi can be a great director, he’s far from the right fit, or the best creative choice for, Judge Dredd. Rian Johnson and J.J. Abrams proved that loving something intensely doesn’t give one the right to interpret it for the big screen. Both directors demonstrated catastrophic execution with their respective Star Wars films.
Following two Thor films that landed like a legless seagull, he’s set to jump into comic scripts again. Why? Why does he keep directing these films? Likely because he toes the party line and says yes like a good boy.
A Thin Notebook
Only a handful of productions gave us a memorable experience, including Hunt for the Wilderpeople. While Jojo Rabbit was a poignant production, I don’t know anyone who regularly returns to it as a masterpiece. The same can be said for much of his work.
Pete Travis understood the assignment and executed Dredd in a very special way. The next step would be to explore beyond Mega-City One. Karl Urban was not only born to play the chiselled, blunt lawmaker, but also exhibited an unrivalled passion for the character. He didn’t return for a sequel for two main reasons: the first being the quality of the script.
He was also told that box office returns failed to yield significant returns. However, by that logic, The Dark Knight should never have been made. Hollywood should look to examples from the past and develop a vision, not a bank balance. They’ll soon find the latter follows. And Star Wars fans, don’t think you’re safe, he’s coming for you too. Going forward, let’s hope he’s more of a cook than a butcher. Dredd needs authenticity, not quippy, winky gags, which is what Waititi is rumoured to be leaning towards.
Production Status and Release Date
While the script, written by Drew Pearce (Iron Man 3, Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation) is finished, it’s going through a final treatment and is being pitched to studios. There are no confirmed casting choices, and all other details are yet to be announced.
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