Keanu Reeves in Talks to Join Don Lee in James Wan’s The Gangster, The Cop, The Devil Remake

 

Keanu Reeves could be stepping into a crime thriller alongside South Korean action star Don Lee as Hollywood develops a remake of the 2019 Korean film The Gangster, The Cop, The Devil.

According to Deadline, Paramount is negotiating with the John Wick actor to join the project, which will be directed and produced by James Wan. While Reeves’ potential character has not been officially revealed, speculation points to the police officer role originally played by Kim Mu-yeol.

The remake will bring back Don Lee as Jang Dong-soo, a crime boss forced into an unlikely partnership with a police officer to track down a serial killer. The premise pits two men from opposing sides of the law against a common enemy, creating a tense alliance where neither can afford to fully trust the other.

The original film built its appeal around this uneasy partnership, combining hard-hitting action with a murder investigation. Reeves’ possible involvement could give the American adaptation additional international appeal, particularly among audiences familiar with his action-heavy roles in the John Wick franchise. However, his casting and character remain unconfirmed.

Eric Pearson will write the screenplay, working from earlier drafts by Shay Hatten and Brian Helgeland. The project brings together several major names in action and genre filmmaking, with Wan producing alongside Michael Clear and Jason Blum through Blumhouse Atomic Monster.

Additional producers include Don Lee through Big Punch Global, Sylvester Stallone and D. Matt Geller through Balboa Productions, Chris S. Lee through B&C Group, and Lorenzo di Bonaventura.

The adaptation faces the challenge of translating a Korean crime thriller into an American setting while preserving the original’s central tension: a criminal and a law enforcement officer forced to cooperate when conventional methods fail. Whether Reeves ultimately joins the cast, his reported negotiations have already put the remake on the radar of action-film fans.