Jason Statham should remake Ghosts of Mars, his failed updating of a John Wayne classic. While Statham had appeared in some music videos prior to Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, that 1998 gangster comedy served as his acting debut. Nobody was looking at Statham as the next big action star at that point, but his casting in 2002’s The Transporter completely altered the course of his career. Jason Statham action movies are now an indelible part of pop culture, but John Carpenter’s Ghosts of Mars actually served as his introduction to the genre.
This 2001 sci-fi actioner cast Statham as Sergeant Jericho, part of a squad of Martian police officers who find themselves besieged by possessed miners with a fondness for decapitation. Carpenter’s movie is a blend of his past work, but it also allowed Statham to show off his fighting and shooting skills. Ghosts of Mars was Statham’s first action movie but did little for his career, grossing only half of its estimated $28 million budget (via Box Office Mojo) and receiving largely poor reviews.
Jason Statham Was Almost Ghosts Of Mars’ Leading Man
Ghosts of Mars could have beaten The Transporter to the punch
Ghosts of Mars was only Statham’s fourth movie, and there had been little to indicate in Guy Ritchie’s Lock, Stock… or Snatch that he was an action icon in the making. Carpenter was the first to see that potential in the young British star, and he actually wanted to cast Statham as Ghosts of Mars’ main antihero “Desolation” Williams. In hindsight, this could have been a great first leading role for Statham. The movie really builds up to Williams’ first appearance, setting him up as the most dangerous man on the planet.
Sony wanted a bigger name for Ghosts of Mars because, even with a relatively modest budget for a big action movie, Jason Statham was considered too much of an unknown.
Williams also gets plenty of action sequences and a couple of zingers to deliver. Sony wanted a bigger name for Ghosts of Mars because, even with a relatively modest budget for a big action movie, Statham was regarded as too much of an unknown. Ice Cube later accepted the role, while Carpenter rewrote the Jericho character into a bigger part for Statham. Outside of leads Cube and Natasha Henstridge, Jericho is easily the film’s most prominent supporting player.
Why Ice Cube Disliked Ghosts Of Mars So Much
Ghosts of Mars’ leading man refused to promote the final product
It made total sense to cast Cube as Ghosts of Mars’ lead over Statham. Not only was he a hugely successful musician, he was also coming off of hits like Next Friday and Three Kings. On paper, Cube sounds like great casting for the toughest outlaw on Mars – but his performance is incredibly one-note and disengaged. That might be explained by the rapper’s post-movie analysis, where Cube told Contactmusic.com in 2008 that he only signed on to Ghosts of Mars to work with Carpenter.
I don’t like that movie. I’m a big fan of John Carpenter (and) the only reason I did it was because John Carpenter directed it. But they really didn’t have the money to pull the special effects off.
Cube’s unhappiness with Ghosts of Mars extended to refusing to promote it, and whenever asked about the movie, often labels it as his worst. His dissatisfaction with the project clearly rubbed off on his performance, since it makes little sense that an actor as charismatic as Cube feels so stilted. He delivers most of his dialogue in a flat monotone, and his performance only comes alive in the rare moments he smiles or displays an emotion beyond looking sullen.
While Henstridge is the true lead of Ghosts of Mars, it’s a major issue that Cube is so visibly checked out. It sinks many of his scenes and makes it nearly impossible to engage with his character. Bizarrely, Cube’s best moment comes with the final scene, where he and Henstridge’s Melanie reunite to do battle against the next wave of spirits; had he carried that energy throughout, it would made his turn way more fun.
Ghosts Of Mars Is A Stealth Remake Of A John Wayne Western
Well, it’s technically a remake of THREE John Wayne Westerns
Carpenter is an avowed fanboy of Howard Hawks and considers him one of the best filmmakers who ever lived. Carpenter’s favorite Western is Hawks’ Rio Bravo, which cast John Wayne as a besieged Sheriff holding onto a dangerous prisoner. Many critics have sung this 1959 Western’s praises, with Quentin Tarantino almost rivaling Carpenter in his adoration for it. Carpenter loved Rio Bravo so much he remade it twice with Assault on Precinct 13 and Ghosts of Mars – even though the remake label is loosely attached.
Ghosts of Mars is arguably even more of a Western than Carpenter’s Assault on Precinct 13, with its wide open desert landscapes, use of dynamite and a showdown on a train.
Both take the basic formula and transplant it to new settings; 1970s Los Angeles and Mars in the year 2176, respectively. Ghosts of Mars is arguably even more of a Western than Carpenter’s Assault on Precinct 13, with its wide open desert landscapes, use of dynamite and a showdown on a train. The film even borrows elements from Hawks and Wayne’s unofficial Rio Bravo trilogy, with the duo remaking their own film twice with El Dorado and Rio Lobo.
The final scene of Cube and Henstridge’s characters walking off together is an acknowledged rip from El Dorado, for instance. Some of the interplay between Henstridge and Statham mirrors that of Wayne and his banter with the various cocky gunfighters he teams with throughout the trilogy; that said, Statham and Henstridge’s chatter is decidedly flirtier. Rio Bravo and its follow-ups are completlely lacking in the horror edge Carpenter brings to his work, but their DNA is definitely spread throughout Ghosts of Mars.
A Jason Statham Fronted Ghosts Of Mars Remake Would Redeem His First Action Role
Statham is even better for Ghosts of Mars over 20 years later
While it’s hard to say if Ghosts of Mars would have been a far superior film had Statham played the lead, at the very least, he would have suited the Williams role much better. Even so, Statham was at an early stage in his career and had yet to refine his screen persona. This includes his fighting style, which is somewhat graceless as presented in Ghosts of Mars. However, 20 years on, Statham would be perfect for a modern remake of Ghosts of Mars.
Few Carpenter devotees would claim Ghosts of Mars is his best work; the flashback structure is a strange stylistic gimmick, as is his use of dissolves within scenes. The “ghosts” themselves look like background extras in a Mad Max ripoff from the 1980s and are utterly lacking in menace. Even so, the central hook of the film is a great one, and a reboot could flesh it out further. The key problem with fighting the possessed is that if their host body dies, the spirit just exits the body to look for a new puppet to possess.
Ghosts of Mars barely makes use of this element, with the heroes blowing away hordes of miners with machine gun fire. A remake could further develop the horror elements, including improved creature designs and the protagonists being forced not to kill their attackers. Statham has played characters like Williams many times at this point in films like Wrath of Man or even 2024’s The Beekeeper. With a Ghosts of Mars remake, Statham could have a second shot at the movie that launched his action career – and this time, he can get it right.