It’s been two years since we had any news on Disney’s reboot of The Rocketeer, the cultily beloved 1991 film that was based on comics by Dave Stevens. In 2021, David Oyelowo (Selma, Star Wars Rebels) and his wife, actress and producer Jessica Oyelowo, signed on to produce the film via their company Yoruba Saxon Productions.
And now it has a writer! The Wrap reports that Eugene Ashe (Sylvie’s Love) is on board to write the film, which may no longer called The Return of the Rocketeer.
In the previous Rocketeer film, stunt pilot Cliff Secord (Bill Campbell) dons the jetpack that allows him to fly around saving the day—and punching Nazis (let by Timothy Dalton). Jennifer Connelly and Alan Arkin also starred in the movie, which was directed by Joe Johnston (Captain America: The First Avenger).
The new film will be a bit different. David Oyelowo told The Wrap last year:
In our film, he’s going to be an ex-Tuskegee airman, so it’s still in that 1940s milieu. We know we have to adhere to the things that people loved about the first one. But that was 30 years ago, so we want to make a film that’s going to resonate for the next 30 years and especially for the now. That’s the needle we have to thread and we’re working hard to do so.
Oyelowo will also star in the film, though it’s unclear whether he’ll be the Rocketeer or a supporting character.
Writer Ashe has written and directed two feature films, Homecoming (based on his off-Broadway play) and Sylvie’s Love, which was a ’60s-set romance starring Tessa Thompson and Nnamdi Asomugha.
No release date or even year has been announced for the reboot; of course, the SAG-AFTRA strike will need to be resolved before anyone can set foot in front of a camera, let alone blast off with a jet pack.
