Director Adam Shankman (“Hairspray”) and Amazon MGM Studios are putting together two action heavyweights for a new film, “The Man With The Bag.” Deadline reports that Arnold Schwarzenegger will make his first big screen debut in years with the Christmas comedy he’ll co-star with rising action star Alan Ritchson.
“The Man With The Bag” focuses on Santa’s stolen magic bag, and the Christmas icon turns to the naughty list to find a former thief named Vance to help retrieve the bag in a massive heist. Joining them will be some misfit elves and Santa’s daughter in their quest to save Christmas.
The report assumes that Schwarzenegger is playing Santa and Ritchson is playing the aforementioned recruited thief. It’s unclear who will play Santa’s daughter, but it could be a prime role for any actress.
Ritchson is gathering steam thanks to his breakout role as Jack Reacher on the hit Amazon Prime Video series “Reacher,” recently joining the “Fast & Furious” franchise, and will be seen next in Guy Ritchie’s WWII commando action-comedy film, “The Ministry of Gentlemanly Warfare.” The hulking actor is currently shooting the third season of “Reacher.”
Of course, in the 1990s, Schwarzenegger made the goofball Christmas comedy “Jingle All The Way,” which has developed an appreciation over the years. One of the last films Schwarzenegger made was the bonkers satirical action flick “Kung Fury 2,” which stars Michael Fassbender and Alexandra Shipp. Still, some financing/legal issues have delayed the film’s release. More recently, he’s been making the Netflix spy series “Fubar,” which is in its second season.
Shankman’s most recent credits include “Only Murders In The Building” and “Disenchanted.”
Amazon MGM Studios is about to release a remake of “Road House” from director Doug Liman on the streaming service later this month and is also in development on an adaptation of the Tom Clancy novel “Rainbow Six” that will continue the John Clark franchise led by Michael B. Jordan and has “John Wick” director Chad Stahleski attached to helm it. [Deadline]
