1973’s Papillon, starring Steve McQueen and Dustin Hoffman is undoubtedly a classic, but one that suprisingly few people have seen. However, Hollywood is hoping people will be happy to show up for a remake, which sees Charlie Hunnam and Rami Malek take over the central roles.

Here’s the synopsis: ‘Based on the international best-selling autobiographic books “Papillon” and “Banco”, the film follows the epic story of Henri “Papillon” Charrière (Charlie Hunnam), a safecracker from the Parisian underworld who is framed for murder and condemned to life in the notorious penal colony on Devil’s Island. Determined to regain his freedom, Papillon forms an unlikely alliance with a convicted counterfeiter Louis Dega (Rami Malek), who in exchange for protection, agrees to finance Papillon’s escape.’

The film will be in US cinemas in August. No UK release date has currently been announced. Take a look at the first trailer below. [Read more…]