Stephen King’s epic novel The Stand is about to finally become a movie after countless stops and starts. Now, with a director in place, Warner Bros. is hoping to secure a big name to lead it and that just might be Matthew McConaughey.
Back on Monday, The Guardian reported that the studio is hoping the Interstellar star will take the role of Randall Flagg, the villain in King’s novel. It sounds like the perfect role for McConaughey, as the character is a cowboy with supernatural powers, ruling in Las Vegas after a virus kills most of the population.
The films will be directed by The Fault in Our Stars helmer Josh Boone, who came in after Ben Affleck and Scott Cooper both left. Over the weekend, Boone made headlines by telling Kevin Smith that Warner Bros. plans to split the novel into four movies. Considering that the 1994 TV mini-series with Gary Sinise ran four episodes, 90 minutes each, that doesn’t sound like a far-fetched idea.
However, unlike The Hunger Games or The Hobbit, the films will be rated R, so Warner Bros. is going to need some big stars to justify a high budget. Production is expected to start this spring, so we should hear more casting news in the coming weeks.
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