It was just about this time last year when the buzz around Nicolas Winding Refn's "Drive" was beginning to build and make serious noise. The picture had just premiered at the Cannes Film Festival to rapturous reviews, going on to earn Refn Best Director honors. And the film managed a modest, but no less impressive $76 million worldwide at the box office when it opened along with instant cult status. Ryan Gosling solidified himself as a leading man, and Refn as an auteur of the highest order. And it seems our adventures with Driver may not be over…
In book stores now is "Drive" author James Sallis' sequel "Driven" and in a recent interview with The Independent, it was revealed that a movie is in the works. "…they love the book" Sallis told the paper that added the novel "is in the movie pipeline." Granted, that's all we got and it's pretty thin admittedly, but clearly, there are some folks kicking the tires on the idea of bringing Driver back to the big screen. Whether or not any of the principal players will be involved remains to be seen (though we can't imagine a sequel without Ryan Gosling), but it looks like the first steps are being made to bring this to fruition. But don't get too excited…
Remember, the original movie took six years to get made, going through various incarnations — and moving from a major studio to an indie production — before it was cracked. And there are still a lot of steps for this to happen: a script, financing, casting etc. But now that we've poured all the cold water we can, if it does get made, what will it be about?
Well, the novel picks up seven years after the events of "Drive" and our hero is now living in Phoenix under the name Paul West, and he's engaged to be married. However, when two goons attack him and his fiancée, leaving her dead, Driver is forced to face his past and seek vengeance. [Insert cool electro soundtrack] "He is trying to suppress the violence – but the sequel shows the process of him accepting that this is who he is. He tries to become a normal person and re-invents himself. After his fiancée is killed, the violence is unleashed again," Sallis explained.
"It was difficult not to visualise Ryan Gosling playing the role when I wrote the sequel," Sallis also said. "I think he really made the character his own. Of course, they made changes in the script – but it has the blood, heart and guts of the book – it feels like my film."
So, keep those expectations tempered, but there's a chance Driver will be back with another cool jacket and a toothpick in his mouth.