Up until now, no matter how hard our industry strived to break down the participation disparity between men and women in fly fishing there is one thing the men currently have that the women don’t, THE MOVIE!
Well now a new A River Runs Through It film is on the way, and this time its women who will be doing most of the fly fishing.
Director Robert Redford who directed the original film confirmed long-swirling rumors of a reboot. “It’s official,” Redford wrote. “I’m making a new A River Runs Through It.”
When Redford was first approached about directing a new version of the movie, his initial response was that it would be impossible because the original 1992 movie is such an enduring classic. “I love the first one so much and I don’t want to do anything to ruin the memory of that,” Redford told Entertainment Weekly. “So it just felt like, let’s just restart it because then we can add some new dynamics.” The idea for an all-female cast came to him simply because, he said, “My favorite thing to do is work with strong women and I want to take advantage of the huge surge of women now taking up the sport.”
Redford also revealed the two actresses who will take on the title roles: Mila Kunis and Scarlett Johannsen will play sisters Norma and Paulina Maclean based on the original characters of Norman and Paul Maclean. Craig Sheffer and Brad Pitt played the Maclean brothers in the 1992 original.
Brad Pitt was among the first to voice support for the all-female remake and said that Kunis and Johansson would have no problem measuring up to the original cast.
Redford would not confirm who will be taking on the roles of Neil Burns and Rawhide, two of the movies more iconic characters. He hinted that the gender reversal of those two characters will be well worth the wait and has already spawned a new hashtag #sisterherewantstofish.
Redford also addressed early criticism from Hollywood insiders that the film did not need a reboot. “These are the same naysayers who said the Ghostbusters reboot was going to be a miserable failure and look how well that turned out. Sure there will some fiftysomethings mourning the death of their cherished fly fishing movie but they still have the original, this film is for the next generation of fly fishers.”
The new version of the film does not yet have a scheduled release date.
That’s funny. 🙂
Almost got me there…
Let’s start a movement, 14yr-old World Accuracy Champion, MAXINE MCCORMICK, should be cast for all the casting!
As I kept telling my fellow Brits quite some time ago, “Accept no reboot(e)s, fellas, the first one did damage enough…..”
Great post.Thanks for sharing funny post with us.Love reading your post.Keep sharing.
You did this joke 8 years ago with Afleck and Damon
Good to see someone is paying attention. A reboot of a spoof of a reboot.
Okay, so Amber in Why? didn’t work out, but The Industry will find and try another, newly poster-girled, vehicle. Face it, we’ve got to….
Meh… this piece has funny moments but overall feels like you are making fun of the “strong women” and men working hard to make the sport more inclusive. Hopefully not the intent? Lots of opportunities to spoof on this in chumion though. How about, “Local man astounded to learn female guide can back her own boat trailer” or “Groundbreaking scientific study shows trout don’t notice gender of angler”… 😉
How about a woman friend of mine, great photographer and artist, who travelled Argentina with me for a whole, year after-“River”, fishing season with me in the Nineties, sitting on a winter frost- and summer-wind and -sun-shattered rocky outcrop above a piece of then unwanted, upper Kau Tapen one evening, after I had just thrashed the living something out of the Rio Grande above and below it (successfully, so, for me, thankfully, my manhood was in-tact), kindly observing: “You boys and your fishing…”
She could cast a very nice line too, when she wished to.
No war, just co-existing, getting on with one other and lots of fun.
The original in 1992 with a young Brad Pitt is still one, if not my favourite movie on all time. Redford was brilliant in his directing and professional in keeping it as close to Norman Macleans book. Robert even visited Norman just before he died with the hope of getting his blessing to do the movie. Norman Maclean being a purist did not initially like the idea as I surmise he didn’t want Hollywood to cheapen his story.
I don’t exactly know what transpired between the 2 of them but when Maclean died , the movie went ahead. Redford seemed to respect some of Macleans sentiments in that he stuck as close to the book as he could possibly do. He employed the services of Gary Borger and his son Jason both being re-known as professional fly fishermen. Gary is one of the best in the world and Jason has followed in his footsteps. Gary helped and instructed (guided) Redford with his expertise whilst Jason being younger actually did those beautiful shadow cast scenes. Certain dialogue that Redford initially used such as fishing pole were changed on Gary’s instruction as such terminology would have never been used in Macleans day.
The movie was almost perfect, except the Blackfoot River wasn’t used as it had deteriorated and was not pristine as it was in those days. The venue was the Upper Yellowstone.
I was absolutely horrified that Redford who I always respected as a man of integrity could let Hollywood get it’s filthy hands on it and change it with hidden political and social motives. It’s absolute sacrilege and disrespect of the deceased man’s beautiful work and wishes.
I would never watch the new version which intends to promote a hidden agenda.