John Woo’s The Killer (2024) Remake: Does the Action Master Still Deliver After 35 Years?

After the release of The Killer in 1989, the Hong Kong film industry was relatively quiet. This movie quickly gained international attention and, over the next three decades, became one of the greatest action films of all time.

Now, 35 years later, legendary director John Woo has remade his own classic. The remake of The Killer was released on the streaming platform Peacock on August 23, 2024. The big question is: Does this new version retain John Woo’s magic, or has it faded?

John Woo is widely regarded as a master of action cinema. His signature elements—guns, choreographed fights, and intense bloodshed—earned his movies the nickname “Bullet Ballet.” But what sets Wu apart from others is the emotional depth he brings to the action.

In 1986, three years after his breakout hit A Better Tomorrow, Woo made The Killer, a gripping tale of an assassin named Ah Jong. After a tragic accident leaves a singer blind, Ah Jong, feeling deep guilt, vows to pay for surgery to restore her sight. To fund this, he takes on one last mission. Woo has often said that The Killer was inspired by the French film Le Samouraï (1967) and the American movie Mean Streets (1973).

Over the last 35 years, The Killer has earned its place as one of the best action movies ever made. Its influence can be seen in the works of filmmakers like Quentin Tarantino, 61, Robert Rodriguez, 56, and Johnnie To, 69.

Beyond cinema, The Killer even impacted hip-hop culture. In 2005, Vibe magazine listed it as one of the top movies that influenced hip-hop, ranking it at number 21.

Fast forward to 2024, and John Woo’s remake has finally arrived. The idea of an English-language remake of The Killer had been in the works since the 1990s, with names like Richard Gere and Denzel Washington attached at one point. Michelle Yeoh was also rumored to play a police officer in a planned sequel. But that version never materialized.

In 2007, The Hollywood Reporter announced that Korean-American director John H. Lee would remake The Killer, set in Los Angeles‘ Chinatown and starring Jung Woo-sung. Again, this version failed to get off the ground.

In 2017, when John Woo returned to Hollywood with Manhunt, talks of a remake resurfaced. Universal Pictures was set to make the film, with Lupita Nyong’o cast as the lead. However, she left the project in 2019 due to scheduling conflicts.

In 2022, it was announced that the film will be made for Peacock. British actress Nathalie Emmanuel is playing the lead role.

This new version moves the setting from Hong Kong to France and makes several changes to the original story. Most critics feel that the remake doesn’t quite capture the magic of the original. The balance of action and emotion that made the first film so special seems to have been lost.

In the original film, Chow Yun-fat played the assassin Ah Jong, and Sally Yeh portrayed the blind singer Jenny. In the original film, Chow Yun-fat played the assassin Ah Jong, and Sally Yeh portrayed the blind singer Jenny. Their relationship deepens over time, the main strength of the movie.

In the remake, the assassin is now a woman, played by Nathalie Emmanuel. She takes on the role of G, while Diana Silvers plays the singer, Jean.

Unfortunately, the chemistry between these two characters doesn’t resonate as deeply. Instead, the film introduces a romantic subplot between G and a police officer, which feels underdeveloped.

That said, Nathalie Emmanuel delivers a strong performance as G—a brutal assassin with a soft side. Her portrayal of this complex character stands out. The 35-year-old actress, best known for her work in the Fast & Furious franchise, is likely to see her career soar even higher after working with John Woo. She will also appear in Francis Ford Coppola’s Megalopolis, due out later this year.

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While the new The Killer doesn’t quite match the original, it still offers some highlights—Emmanuel’s portrayal of G, excellent background music, well-choreographed action, and a sense of nostalgia that will appeal to longtime fans of John Woo’s work.