Legendary Depp
The big news today is the possible casting of Johnny Depp in the latest stab at a cinematic adaptation of Richard Matheson’s I Am Legend. The following rumours are just a small sample of those flying around the internet.
1) The only role Depp could possibly play in the film, since it revolves around the last normal man alive, is as one of the vampires, particularly Ben Cortman, the lead character’s nemesis.
2) The Ben Cortman character has been written out of the script, and the vampires will be savage, inarticulate creatures. Depp will be playing a fellow survivor named Philip.
3) Johnny Depp will be replacing Will Smith as the lead.
Alright, that last one was mine. Seriously, wouldn’t Depp, who has a penchant for expressing isolation and madness, be about a thousand times better than Smith as the lead character, Neville? Does Smith even have that much clout in the industry anymore? And hasn’t Depp’s star risen enough to be cast as the lead as opposed to being relegated to second banana.
It seems as if everyone is applauding the decision to make Depp the villain of the piece. While I think he’d be great in the part, it seems like a waste of time if he isn’t playing off someone equally strong. And if the second rumour is true, then what’s the point of the film at all, unless Depp’s character is replacing the female character from the book.
Finally, isn’t it about time that someone did a straight adaptation of I Am Legend? I hadn’t read it until last year because of my aversion for all things vampiric and I now realize my mistake. I’m not against tinkering with the source material to suit the needs of film, but I Am Legend is practically fool-proof. It’s short, it wouldn’t cost a lot to make, and it’s one of the best horror stories ever committed to print, with an ending that stays with you for days. Not that this new try won’t succeed, but why are we three tries in and it still seems like they’re not even attempting to stick to the book?