Jake Gyllenhaal has long since established himself as one of the most committed and talented actors of his generation, and now that he’s widely regarded as one of the very best in the business, he’s been edging back towards more mainstream fare following his experience with Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time seeing him swear off big budget studio movies for almost a decade.
After winning strong notices for his turn as Quentin Beck in the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Spider-Man: Far From Home, the 40 year-old will soon be seen in Antoine Fuqua’s remake of Danish crime thriller The Guilty and Michael Bay’s high concept actioner Ambulance, while a new rumor pegs him as the frontrunner to lead Hollywood’s next high profile Stephen King adaptation.
Salem’s Lot has been brought to television three times, with the 1979 original getting a sequel series a decade later, and Rob Lowe headlined a 2004 interpretation, but a feature-length remake has been in the works since early 2019. James Wan is slated to produce through his Atomic Monster banner, with Annabelle Comes Home director Gary Dauberman set behind the camera.
As per the report, Gyllenhaal is wanted for Ben Mears, with an offer said to be out already, and Christoph Waltz is named as a contender for Straker, which would also be pretty great casting that’d instantly lend Salem’s Lot an abundance of star power, as well as two phenomenal talents.
Hollywood has no intention of giving up on Stephen King’s back catalogue with over 25 film and television projects currently in the works, that’s for sure. But a new version of Salem’s Lot starring Jake Gyllenhaal and Christoph Waltz would no doubt become one of the most exciting on the docket.