Highlander reboot: Henry Cavill remake of fantasy film could be start of major new franchise, says director

A reboot to the classic 1986 fantasy film Highlander is in the works with John Wick director Chad Stahelski in the works. 

The reboot will follow a similar plot to the original film, with an immortal Scottish swordsman facing off with other immortal warriors in order to obtain a coveted ability.

There had been rumours that the reboot had been quietly dumped, but Stahelski confirmed that it is going ahead, although there could be a long wait until it is released due to the ongoing Hollywood writers’ and actors’ strikes.

Hollywood star Henry Cavill, known for his roles in the DC Extended Universe, The Witcher, Mission Impossible, and more, is slated to take on the role of the immortal Highlander.

Stahelski updated fans on the fate of the new series on Josh Horowitz’s Happy Sad Confused podcast.

Is Henry Cavill starring in the Highlander reboot?

Henry Cavill is attached to star in the reboot as Connor MacLeod, the immortal who claims the title Highlander. MacLeod was played by French-American actor Christopher Lambert in the original films.

Cavill, who is best known for his roles as Superman in the DC films and Geralt of Rivia in The Witcher, announced last year that he would not reprise the role of Geralt in the fourth season of the Netflix show. The character will be played by Liam Hemsworth in later seasons.

Additionally, Cavill is not expected to return as Superman, despite a cameo appearance at the end of Black Adam. Following James Gunn and Peter Safran’s takeover of DC studios, a new actor is expected to play the Man of Steel in later instalments.

Other characters for the Highlander reboot have not yet been cast - Sean Connery, Clancy Brown, and Roxanne Hart starred in the original movie.

Will Highlander be a franchise?

The original Highlander film did spawn a franchise, with three film sequels, two spin-off TV shows, and a bunch of novels.

Stahelski hinted that the reboot could be the start of a franchise of its own and compared it to the John Wick films, which he also directed. The four John Wick films grossed just over $1 billion collectively, and a prequel series, The Continental, will debut on Amazon Prime Video this month. 

Stahelski said: “Highlander, I can tell you right now… if we got our s*** together and we pull off the feature, we have ideas for days about how to make the coolest characters and to make that an epic TV show.

“I just think that’s a rich, rich, rich, rich mythology. When you can pick any period in time, any nationality, any culture, any type of person and make them an immortal, then have to duel and deal with the burden of immortality, that’s f***ing cool to me.”

"I think we have some very good elements now. The trick is when you have the tagline 'there can only be one,' you can’t just kill everybody the first time. I’ll say it for you first, our story engages a lot of the same characters and stuff like that, but we’ve also brought in elements of all the TV shows, and we’re trying to do a bit of a prequel, a setup to The Gathering, so we have room to grow the property."

Where can you watch the original Highlander film?

Highlander is available to watch on ITVX with a premium subscription. You can also rent the film from Amazon, YouTube, Apple TV, and the Sky Store. 

The first sequel is currently unavailable to stream in the UK, but Highlander III: The Sorcerer can be streamed for free on Pluto TV, and Highlander: Endgame is available to rent from Apple TV and Amazon.

You can buy the 1992 six season Highlander series on Apple TV and Amazon, and Highlander: The Raven, which is just one season long, from Apple TV.