The 2014 action film starring Scarlett Johansson, Lucy, is now bound to revive in TV spinoff form without its lead star, although Morgan Freeman may take part in it.
Lucy follows a young American student in Taiwan who accidentally gains superhuman skills such as telepathy, hyper-enhanced cognitive abilities, telekinesis, and analgesia that turn her into a force to be reckoned with that eventually transcends space and time, so there’s a hint of sci-fi in it too. The film starred Johansson, Freeman, Choi Min-sik, and Amr Waked, with acclaimed French filmmaker Luc Besson directing. Despite the mixed reception it had, Lucy still made $463 million on a $39M budget at the time.
According to Variety, EuropaCorp, one of the original studios behind the movie, has partnered with Village Roadshow, one of Hollywood’s major producers and financers, to bring back the world of Lucy, now in TV format. While Johansson's name is in no way whatsoever tied to the projects, the same report states that Freeman is deep in negotiations to reprise the role of Professor Samuel Norman, now in a lead capacity. In the film, Norman helps Lucy navigate through the extent of her powers and the dangers tied to them, and his return would certainly add some star power to the entire idea of a TV spinoff.
Surprisingly, even though Besson is one of the most accomplished directors of French action movies, Lucy sits comfortably at the top as the most commercially successful film he’s directed, far ahead of the likes of Léon: The Professional or The Fifth Element. EuropaCorp was founded by Besson and it’s the leading producer behind other major franchises tied to his name. These franchises include the French Taxi saga and the more popular Taken and The Transporter series.
Besson's last film, 2019’s Anna, was a commercial flop, and the director has been the subject of controversy due to numerous allegations of sexual abuse filed against him, though so far he’s yet to be declared guilty by any competent court. Meanwhile, Freeman may not work as much as he did in his younger days, but he remains active in TV and film, in addition to lending his voice to many documentaries, with his latest films being Paradise Highway and Hitman's Wife's Bodyguard.
It remains to be seen what kind of interest a Lucy spinoff might harvest among the public, especially after the original film's brain enhancement plot didn't exactly win over sci-fi fans back then. The news did not specify any networks or streaming companies that might already be on board to acquire it.
Lucy (2014) is available on Amazon Prime Video.
Source: Variety