What a glorious combination! Johnny Depp and werewolves! But what film would have two things so awesome in one place? The Lone Ranger… seriously.
Walt Disney Pictures has finally greenlighted The Lone Ranger, a reboot of the classic show. The film took off on a rocky start due to some serious budget issues at, at one point it reached $275 million, but after much wrangling, Director Gore Verbinski trimmed the budget down to $215 million. The box-office failure of Cowboys & Aliens also didn’t help persuade Disney either, but at long last this cowboy flick is getting made and production starts February 6 in New Mexico.
The team behind The Lone Ranger is the very same team behind the hugely popular Pirates of the Caribbean movies: star Johnny Depp, producer Jerry Bruckheimer and Verbinski (director of the first three). The writers are Justin Haythe and “Pirates” duo Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio.
Oddly enough, Depp is not playing the title character, but instead he’s taking on the role Tonto, the Lone ranger’s loyal Native American sidekick. Armie Hammer and Clyde Tolson have been cast as the masked man. Tom Wilkinson will play the chief villain, Latham Cole, a robber-baron type, and English actress Ruth Wilson has the main female role of Rebecca Reid.
Helena Bonham Carter has been cast as a brothel madam; Dwight Yoakam as gang leader Butch Cavendish, who is in league with Cole; Barry Pepper as an army officer; and James Badge Dale. However, it’s not yet confirmed that they have all been signed on.
Now for the werewolf part! Replicating the formula that has made the Pirates franchise so successful for Disney, Verbinski and the writers are introducing supernatural elements to originally bland Lone Ranger. It has been rumored that werewolves and Indian occult elements will play a role, but it hasn’t been confirmed yet.
What do you guys think? The Lone Ranger and werewolves? Think it’s a hit or a miss? Let me know in a comment below!
– Moonlight
About the Author
Moonlight loves to write about, read about and learn about everything pertaining to werewolves and other supernatural beasties. She writes for top genre sites like Vampires.com and Werewolves.com. You will most likely find her huddled over a book of folklore with coffee in hand. Touch her coffee and you may lose a limb. You can stalk her via her Twitter.
Wow, I just wouldn’t mess with Lone Ranger & supernatural elements. I’d have made it a good Western Action and there would be a way to do so without resorting to anything science fiction or fantasy for it. I’ll take Wild Wild West for example, in it’s day it was a good Western Drama t.v. series, but when they made the movie, the inclusion of Steam Punk elements made it a different entity than it’s original.
But they’re doing it and going out on a limb. I’m curious for it to see Johnny Depp in the movie. And I’d go see it just to see how they pull it off and what story they pull come up with.
I don’t know. My first instinct is to cringe but maybe not!. I think I need more info on how the story goes. I can’t help but think how stupid I thought that cowboy alien movie looked and there are enough bad werewolf movies that it will hurt the genre further if another mainstream werewolf bombs not to mention the “return” of the lone ranger.
Sounds iffy, but it could work.
Of course they will use the Werewolf as a dummy punching-bag created by this villain Latham Cole to distract the Lone Ranger and Tonto will become infected but they will save him with Shamanic powers. We need more details about this, maybe I’ll have to punch the wall again.
Greetings.
i am related to the radio tonto in some way or form but anyway werewolves although i love werewolves should sit out on this one johnny depp is a good thing to add to it but tonto and lone ranger and werewolves dont mix well
Why can’t newer movies just stick with their original ones? I don’t want to see werewolves in the Lone Ranger! I love werewolves, but really, it’s like pitting John Wayne against zombies! It may seem LOGICAL, but as a movie, I don’t know how well it would work.
Oh god NOOO! They’ll only solidify the pop culture concept that werewolves are native american shifters that only looks for mates! HORRIBLE!
i would love werewolf
i would love werewolf’s in any johnny depp
i would love werewolf’s in any johnny depp movies
Yeah werewolfs
I would love to see Johnny as a werewolf, he would make a hot looking wolf :D