William Goldman is rewriting the remake of 1986 Heat, a Burt Reynolds movie. The remake is for Jason Statham to star and Brian de Palma is directing. What a combination!

What is very cool is that Goldman also wrote the screenplay for the original – now he’s changed it for a more modern tone.

The story centers on a recovering gambling addict. His job is providing protection in the rough edges of the gambling world, and he refuses gunplay. Instead, he uses hand and edged weapon combat. His friend is brutally beaten by a mobster, and he helps the victim seek out revenge.

If you are not familiar with Goldman, he wrote Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid as well as other classics. He even wrote about screenwriting in Hollywood called “Nobody Knows Nothing“.