Director Spike Lee has cast Sharlto Copley as the key villain in his remake of Oldboy, Park Chan-wook’s brutal thriller about a businessman who, after being kidnapped on his daughter’s birthday, hardens himself for revenge during his years of imprisonment. Lee had initially offered the roles to Christian Bale, Clive Owen, and Colin Firth.

Presumably at some point he got tired of being rejected by really rich and famous actors, and tried for the more-or-less-anonymous Copley – who will be playing the creepy billionaire responsible for co-star Josh Brolin’s extended kidnapping. Elizabeth Olsen is in it too.

We’re not totally sure what to expect from a Spike Lee/Josh Brolin/Copley remake of anything – which is important, because all of the major plot twists in Chan-wook’s original Oldboy have been public knowledge for about a decade. Some surprises here would be nice.

Oldboy starts shooting in September.

[Source: AVC]