Dave Bautista's new action film achieves what Jason Statham, Michael Keaton and Wesley Snipes failed to do

Dave Bautista stars in a new action film, The murderer's gameand he does what Jason Statham, Michael Keaton and Wesley Snipes could not. The 2024 film brings Bautista back to the familiar terrain of an action star. After his breakthrough role in Guardians of the Galaxy In 2014, the WWE wrestler turned actor gained attention in Hollywood as a potential leading man in the genre thanks to his muscular physique and natural physical abilities. This ultimately led to him the leading role in The murderer's game and receive a chance to headline a long-planned project.

The murderer's game follows Dave Bautista's character Joe Flood, a hitman whose life changes when he is diagnosed with a fatal disease. Not wanting to die from the disease, Flood orders himself killed so his death will be quick and carried out by an expert. However, he quickly learns that his illness was a misdiagnosis and that he cannot stop hitmen from hunting him. Anyone who watches The murderer's game will see Dave Bautista's character fighting for his life and trying to launch a new action franchise. The story of the project makes it even more impressive.

Jason Statham, Michael Keaton and Wesley Snipes failed to get a role in “The Killer's Game” before Dave Bautista.

Bautista was not the first choice

Dave Bautista is perhaps the star of The murderer's gamebut the film had a long development process, which led to several well-known actors being hired for the role in advance. The first version of the film was supposed to star Wesley Snipes.when New Line Cinema courted the actor in 2002, right after the Blade IIrelease. The studio ultimately failed to find a director for this version of The murderer's gamewhich led to Wesley Snipes leaving the project.

After Wesley Snipes' departure The murderer's gameMichael Keaton became involved in it. This happened when the project moved from New Line to Paramount and Simon Kinberg stepped in to rewrite the script. But Keaton's version of The murderer's game was lost when Intermedia, the film's production partner, closed. It wasn't until 2018 that development picked up again, this time with the vision of STX Films The murderer's game as a complement to Jason Statham's action films. Statham left the film a year later to pursue other projectswhich led to the casting of Dave Bautista.

How Dave Bautista managed to finish The Killer's Game after more than 20 years

The way to The murderer's gameIt's been over 20 years in the making, but Dave Bautista is the one who's finally managed to make it happen. Wesley Snipes, Michael Keaton and Jason Statham all failed to bring the action film adaptation of Jay Bonansinga's book to the screen. The simple reason Bautista's version came together when the others didn't is patience. Snipes, Keaton and Statham were all linked to The murderer's game for two years or less before moving on. Meanwhile, Bautista waited four years after his casting for production to begin.

There was almost a time when Dave Bautista could have joined Snipes, Keaton and Statham as actors who failed to make it The murderer's game too. The film was in top form when it was first cast in 2019, but the project ran into obstacles behind the scenes over the next four years. It wasn't until Lionsgate took control of the film in 2023 that production dates were set, Bautista's supporting cast announced, and The murderer's game after all these years it finally happened.