Say you’re making a film about a mythical, legendary cultural figure – one whose heroic legacy could imaginably be a little more complicated than the tales told about them. One who, in their old age, might be wrestling with a lot of guilt and regret about their life choices, before having to confront it all in the face of their own mortality. Who are you going to cast in that situation? If you’re James Mangold making Logan, obviously you cast Hugh Jackman. But it turns out, too, that if you’re Michael Sarnoski – director of Pig and A Quiet Place: Day One – making a film about a late-age Robin Hood, you also cast Jackman. Check out the trailer for The Death Of Robin Hood here:
Well, that certainly looks like a different take on the steal-from-the-rich and give-to-the-poor bandit. And this is a figure that, lest we forget, has in one major adaptation been an animated fox. From this trailer, The Death Of Robin Hood does indeed seem to be somewhat in the Logan mould, with touches of The Green Knight and The Northman – there’s a grit and intensity here, sitting side by side with the mythic. That’s no surprise coming from Sarnoski, who brought an earthy richness to Pig, and smuggled a surprisingly emotional character drama into a monster-movie franchise prequel with A Quite Place: Day One. He’s got a cracking cast here, too – starring alongside Jackman are Jodie Comer, Bill Skarsgård, Murray Bartlett and Noah Jupe.
Will The Death Of Robin Hood give even a dash of oo-de-lally oo-de-lally? Will that title be considered a spoiler? And will Sarnoski find himself three-for-three? We’ll find out when it comes to UK cinemas later this year.
