Friday curveball alert, because you did not see this one coming. Jill Soloway, the creator of Amazon’s “Transparent,” has been hired to write and direct the upcoming “Red Sonja” remake for Millennium Films. This new is hugely surprising for several reasons, but perhaps this a lesson in teachable moments.
Millenium Films, not the most woke and progressive production company on earth, had initially been hired Bryan Singer, the “Bohemian Rhapsody” director, to helm the movie initially. Even after allegations of Singer’s sexual misconduct resurfaced, and claims that he abandoned the set of “Bohemian Rhapsody,” eventually replaced by another filmmaker, terrible optics all around, Millenium refused to acknowledge that they had made a mistake. In fact, instead, they doubled down on Singer and brushed off accusations and outrage about his controversial hiring as whiny social justice complaints.
Eventually, the film was put on hold, the optics were terrible, and the company learned this the hard way. And it turns out; Millennium has very much reconsidered that stance. Today, Deadline reports that Soloway, pretty much the polar opposite to Singer, has replaced him.
READ MORE: ‘Red Sonja’ Film Put On Hold Due To Allegations Against Director Bryan Singer
“I can’t wait to bring Red Sonja’s epic world to life,” Soloway told Deadline. “Exploring this powerful mythology and evolving what it means to be a heroine is an artistic dream come true.”
Deadline says casting for a lead actress in Red Sonja will start over. The character originated as a comic book heroine in the 1970s, but she’s likely best known for the 1985 action movie of the same name that starred Brigitte Nielsen and Arnold Schwarzenegger.
READ MORE: Jill Soloway On Jeffrey Tambor’s Effect On ‘Transparent’ And Its Musical Finale
This decision to hire Soloway is quite the about-face, but we’re here for it, because, hey, everyone should learn from their lessons. The hiring is also a surprise because Soloway’s sensibilities are all about empathic, humanistic comedy and dramedy and a world away from action characters. But if Marvel has shown that people like Taika Waitii can bring their sensibilities to action superhero films, there’s no reason why Soloway can’t do the same.
The filmmaker is finishing up her series “Transparent,” on Amazon which is wrapping up as a one-episode musical finale following the expulsion of actor Jeffery Tambor.