HOLLYWOOD – Oscar winner Sean Penn to star in Auf Wiedersehen Pet movie.
Cult British 80s TV show Auf Wiedersehen Pet is getting a Hollywood makeover via actor director Sean Penn. Penn has been working on the project for fifteen years. He talked EXCLUSIVELY to the Studio Exec about his work on the dream project:
I was working with Clint Eastwood on Mystic River and between takes I’d go into my trailer and watch stuff on tape and he came in and saw I was watching old episodes of Auf Wiedersehen Pet and was like ‘Wow! You like Auf Wiedersehen Pet too?’ And we really bonded. I mean, we’re quite different people but here was a language we could both respond to.
The show follows a group of building workers who travel to then West Germany to work on a construction site. We asked Sean how he would change the setup.
I’m keeping it exactly as it is. Clint actually already had a script written and he wanted to play Bomber with Benicio del Toro as Barry. He thought I should play Oz. Now, that to me was like a dream come true. Jimmy Nail played Oz in the original series. He was the guy who really changed me. I went from being a guy who does movies into a serious movie actor. But in the end we all had other commitments so it was put off and now Clint thinks he’s too old to play Bomber. So we’ve got Dwayne the Rock Johnson. Michael Cera is playing Kevin, Ryan Gosling is on for Wayne. Quentin Tarantino is coming in to play Dennis, the leader of the group.
Tarantino likes the show too?
He’s actually written a book about it. It’s amazing. We all loved having him around when we were rehearsing because he knew the lore. I’m just lucky he didn’t take it away from me. But he is keen on doing his Geordie accent.
Is it as good as his Australian one?
Man, that’s a high bar. I’m not sure. Maybe. He disappears into the character. It’s so much fun watching him work and directing him of course.
What’s this? An ‘April Fools Day’ prank? Sean Penn as Oz and Quentin Tarantino as Dennis? U.S film stars trying to play Geordie brickies? Do me a favour! I don’t believe this for second! What utter rubbish!