John Carpenter Is Not A Fan Of The Rock’s ‘Big Trouble In Little China’ Continuation

John Carpenter, who directed the original Halloween, is listed as an executive producer and creative consultant on the direct sequel to the 1978 film; he also composed the music. Carpenter must be a fan of director David Gordon Green and Danny McBride’s vision. Otherwise, he would have ripped the concept to shreds, like he did for the Big Trouble in Little China remake, er, “continuation.”

Of the numerous upcoming projects listed on Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s filmography, the most intriguing is playing Jack Burton (rumored) in Big Trouble in Little China, a role originated by Kurt Russell in Carpenter’s wonderfully weird 1986 movie of the same name. “You can’t remake a classic like that, so what we’re planning to do is we’re going to continue the story” said Hiram Garcia, the president of Johnson’s Seven Buck Productions, about the totally-not-a-sequel. “We’re going to continue the universe of Big Trouble in Little China.” He also contends that despite what IMDb says, “There’s only one person that could ever play Jack Burton, so Dwayne would never try and play that character.”

Carpenter was recently asked about Bigger Trouble in Littler China, and he did not hold back. “They want a movie with Dwayne Johnson. That’s what they want. So they just picked that title,” he told Cinema Blend. “They don’t give a shit about me and my movie. That movie wasn’t a success.” Big Trouble became a cult success, and is known widely considered to be one of the director’s best movies, but Carpenter’s right: it only made $11 million at the box office, on a reported $19-$25 million budget. He plans to get his revenge by remaking Tooth Fairy (The Rock will then retaliate by playing Santa).

For more on Big Trouble in Little China, check out our interviews with Carpenter and writers Gary Goldman and David Z. Weinstein, and an oral history.