We were all big, big fans of director Nicolas Winding Refnâs Drive here at Collider last year, so itâs with eager eyes that weâve been watching Refnâs follow-up, Only God Forgives, unfold. The film stars Ryan Gosling as a man whoâs been living in exile in Bangkok for the past ten years after killing a cop. He manages a Thai boxing club as a front for a drugs operation and finds himself in hot water after his brother is killed for murdering a prostitute. The boysâ mother arrives in Bangkok to collect her son's body and instructs Gosling to take revenge and âraise hell."Refn recently spoke a bit about the making of the film and even touched on his next project, a horror movie/sex thriller called I Walk with the Dead starring Carey Mulligan. Hit the jump to see what he had to say.Speaking at length with the French outlet Liberation (translated by the trusty The Playlist), Refn addressed the casting change that occurred when Luke Evans dropped out of the lead role and elaborated on the tone heâs set for the pic:
"From the beginning, I had the idea of a thriller produced as a western, all in the Far East, and with a modern cowboy hero. I was lucky, Ryan Gosling has accepted the role when Luke Evans withdrew. He preferred to star Peter Jackson's The Hobbit...Luke Evans' agent has probably done him a great service."
Refn also talked about his filming process, saying that he shoots largely in chronological order and prefers to shoot on the fly rather than rely on storyboards:
"I hate the idea that the film is over before we started shooting⦠I spent whole nights finding places in Bangkok. Especially in Chinatown, where most of the film unfolds. We saw dozens of nightclubs, each more kitsch than each other, the walls covered with carved paneling, thick velvet, with flowers in colored plastic gueulardes, erotic statues or classic gold...they give me ideas for scenes.â
Finally, the director confirmed that I Walk with the Dead will be his next film, and heâs already secured financing. He describes it as a horror movie and says, âWeâll turn to Los Angeles or Tokyo.â Personally I'm hoping Refn takes on a Tokyo setting for his next flick; I love the idea of infusing Refn's style into a new location for each film. Not much is known about the plot, but Refn previously said the project came about because he always wanted to âmake a movie with lots of sex.â So, expect lots of horror-infused uglies bumpin' I guess. Heâll reunite with his Drive cohort Carey Mulligan on the flick, but no production start date has been set.
Given that heâs still shooting Only God Forgives, it may be late this year or early 2013 before cameras start rolling. After that, hopefully he and Gosling will get moving on that Loganâs Run remake. If thereâs something I want to see more than a Refn crime thriller in Bankok, itâs a Refn sci-fi movie.