Nicolas Winding Refn is undoubtedly one of the most fascinating and singular directors working today, having brought us the likes of Drive and Only God Forgives in the last few years alone. He’s busy working on his next project, The Neon Demon, but he has revealed plans on what’s next for him after that.
In an interview with Collider, Refn discussed a project he now calls The Avenging Silence, a Tokyo-set spy movie of sorts. Like many filmmakers, he’s still finalizing plans but it looks like this mysterious project might be next in line for him – he also has horror projects The Bringing and I Walk With the Dead in the cards.
Most interesting is who the main character is going to be. He has said that basically it will be a reiteration of the character first seen in his odd historical epic Valhalla Rising, wherein he was known as “One Eye” and played by Mads Mikkelsen. According to him “The Driver” in Drive, as played by Ryan Gosling, was a reincarnation of that character of sorts, as well Vithaya Pansingram’s Lieutenant Chang in the divisive Only God Forgives. Here’s what he told Collider:
Yeah, it’s basically a character that appears in my other movies that will now appear again. Having done The Neon Demon, which was predominantly women protagonists, but the character that Mads [Mikkelsen] plays in Valhalla Rising, Ryan [Gosling] plays him in Drive or Vithaya [Pansringarm] in Only God Forgives, I want to make a new movie with that character.
You can watch the interview over at Collider.
When asked why he wanted to make a movie specifically in Tokyo, Refn replied that the city is, “a world onto itself.” He doesn’t elaborate much beyond that, other than to say “it’s about the future,” but all we can do is postulate what exactly that means. I think it’s a fascinating idea to resurrect a character in spirit if not in literal form, particularly in the sorts of bold, often neon-lit worlds that Refn so inimitably creates.
The Neon Demon is set for a March 2016 release.
Sources: Collider and AFP (image)