Paramount Pictures preemptively acquired a remake of Alfred Hitchcock’s 1958 psychologically thriller Vertigo, with Robert Downey Jr. probably taking on the lead role of James Stewart. Stewart played the role of a former police detective forced to retire after a line of duty trauma leaves with severe fear of heights and vertigo. The remake’s script will be penned by Steven Knight and Downey Jr. is producing the project with his wife Susan Downey through their Team Downey production company, along with Davis Entertainment’s John Davis and John Fox.
Paramount was associated with the original film and hence the Hitchcock Estate favoured the studio as the landing spot for this. The original film’s script was written by Alec Coppel and Samuel A.Taylor from the Boileau-Narcejac novel D’entre les morts ( From Among the Dead).
Vertigo’s plot revolves around the cop who is shelved from active duty due to his affliction but is hired by an acquaintance to shadow his wife Madeleine (played by Kim Novak), who he feels is behaving erratically. The film was a pioneer and was the first to use the dolly zoom, an in-camera device that distorts perspective to create disorientation and pull audiences into the cop’s extreme fear of heights. The film has achieved a cult status over the years and frequently ranked as one of the best films ever made. It also surpassed the popularity of the original novel.
Downey Jr. has kept a low profile ever since he hung up his boots as Iron Man in Avnegers: Endgame. He is next slated to appear in Christopher Nolan’s historical epic Oppenheimer opposite Cillian Murphy and other A-list stars.
(Source: Deadline)
