Disney to Reboot "The Rocketeer" With Black Female Lead

[CBR News]

A "sequel-reboot" of the 1991 film is in development at Disney, which plans to kick off the new franchise with a black female lead character.


Full article here.

[100010959493281]

I imagine this is going to piss off a lot of people, it usually does. And if I'm being honest I can't fault them.

That said, I'm excited by this, and if it looks good I'm going to be there in line opening night.

And it's going to be a period piece too...

The new take keeps the story in a period setting and offers a fresh view on the characters. Set six years after the original Rocketeer and after Secord has vanished while fighting the Nazis, an unlikely new hero emerges: a young African–American female pilot, who takes up the mantle of Rocketeer in an attempt to stop an ambitious and corrupt rocket scientist from stealing jetpack technology in what could prove to be a turning point in the Cold War.

Interesting.

Anyway, of course I hope Marvel does some sort of comic adaption, and Hot Toys does a figure, and all the other people do the other stuff that goes along with these kinds of things.

[Frontier]

This seems conveniently timed with the whole "Riri Williams Iron Man" thing Marvel is starting to push...

Still sounds cool though .

[baronvonblackheart]

Hell yes, bring it on. Glad Cliff isn't being "erased", I'm pleased with the "sequel/reboot" concept. The world needs more rocketpack wearing heroes, no matter who they are under the helmet.

[Derek Metaltron]

It's a sequel and still set roughly in the same era, so ultimately I say this is fine.

[batlash]

Since it's not THE Rocketeer, I'm not all that interested, at least up front. It might turn out to be a perfectly fine film, but it won't be the film I was hoping for, which is, of course, Cliff Secord fighting the Nazi menace in WWII. Will wait and see how it turns out. If it turns out.

[miketen]

I'm glad it's a sequel and not a reboot. Maybe some of the original cast will show up. The title is " The Rocketeers" so it would mean more than one.

[3Dspiderbat]

I'll admit my knee-jerk reaction was "oh COME on." But a bit of Googling turned up this, so why the hell not? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bessie_Coleman

Bill Campbell and Alan Arkin are a hell of a lot more than 6 years older, but I hope they still include them.

[Ceebiro]

I'm happy they're going with a sequel.

[Zero Hunter]

This could be pretty good or a complete mess. Will it tackle the rampant sexism and racism of the time, and will it beat you over the head with it to the point that you can't enjoy the movie? Or will it gloss over that and not acknowledge it at all since this is a Disney movie. With it being set in 1944 to gloss over those aspects would seem pretty lazy.

[Herowatcher]

I'm a little pissed.

I'd rather have another Rocketeer movie with Cliff Secord at the helm.
Here's a chance to make a better movie than what came before with a
character fans want to see more of...especially on the Big Screen. Doesn't
sound like this will be the case.

[Derek Metaltron]

The fact this film won't pretend the original didn't happen already makes it more engaging to old and new fans alike. And there's the chance the original could still appear in a support role. Maybe the Nazis or Soviets did something to him which caused him to age.

[Zevad]

I want a continuation with Dave Stevens creations. Not Hollywood Scriptwriter bot X343838338.

Plus wouldn't it make more sense to make Jenny/Betty the female Rocketeer instead of some random person? Say that she studied to become a female pilot during those six years?

The fact this film won't pretend the original didn't happen already makes it more engaging to old and new fans alike. And there's the chance the original could still appear in a support role. Maybe the Nazis or Soviets did something to him which caused him to age.

I rather they recast him. Hey I love Billy Campbell but I don't need super age rays in a Rocketeer movie.

[RikWriter]

I have no problem at all with a black female being the next Rocketeer.
I have a huge problem with setting it in the late 40s or early 50s. Seriously? Maybe, just maybe, you could say it was a Tuskegee Airman, an African American man, and get away with it still being plausible. But a black woman superhero in the LATE FORTIES???
Why not just set it closer to the modern day, when it wouldn't be so ludicrously unlikely?

[byrd156]

I love the Rocketeer, just don't suck and be respectful to the source material is all I ask.