In a recent earnings call, Lionsgate CEO Jon Feltheimer stated that the Highlander reboot is one of the studio's "fiscal '26 tentpoles" meaning that the film will be released in 2026.
The Highlander franchise started in 1986 with a film that starred Christopher Lambert as the immortal swordsman, Connor MacLeod. That film went on to spawn 3 theatrical sequel films, a popular TV series, an animated children's cartoon, and a TV movie that bridged the gap between the films and the main TV series.
Now, John Wick helmer Chad Stahleski is set to reboot the franchise with former Superman actor Henry Cavill set to play the lead. There's no word on whether Cavill will be playing Connor, Duncan MacLeod (the lead character of the TV series) or a brand new character.
Back in August, Stahelski stated, "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."
He went on to state, "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."
"We're trying to do a bit of a prequel setup to The Gathering. So, we have room to grow the property. 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 mythology."
Highlander follows a fictional story that asserts that immortals exist, hidden within normal society. They must hunt and kill other immortals by beheading them in a contest known as The Gathering, which will see the last-standing immortal gain ultimate power.
While the origins of the contest is never explicitly explained, the franchise generally takes the stance that immortals have existed since the dawn of time and that the contest between them must only abide by three hard rules:
- combat on Holy Ground is forbidden
- combat must be one on one
- in the end, there can only be one.
At the time of the project's announcement, Cavill shared his enthusiasm to lead the project. "I've been a fan of Highlander since I was a lad. From the movies in all of their 80s, Queen slathered glory to the TV show with an actor who looked remarkably like one of my brothers. Being not shy with swords, and having a director as talented as Chad Stahelski at the helm, this is an opportunity like no other."
Cavill recently left his role as Geralt of Rivia in Netflix's The Witcher and was also informed by Warner Bros. Discovery that he would not be returning as Superman after the decision was made to reboot the DC Cinematic Universe.
Cavill could certainly use a win and fans of the actor are hopeful that the sword skills Cavill gained playing Geralt can combine with Stahleski's action pedigree to create a winning project.