Get ready to finally kick off those Sunday shoes … again … because it looks like that long-in-the-works Footloose remake has finally found its cast. It was originally supposed to star Chace Crawford, but that version of the film died earlier this year. Paramount then brought on Craig Brewer (Hustle and Flow) to direct, and the search went out for a new lead actor. Today, the studio has announced (via press release) that newcomer Kenny Wormald will play the role of Ren, originated by Kevin Bacon in the 1984 film.
Joining Wormald will be Juilianne Hough as Ariel, Ren's badass, rebellious love interest, Dennis Quaid as Reverend Moore (played by John Lithgow in the original) and Miles Teller as Willard (played by Christopher Penn in the original). I kind of like how they're mixing unknowns with more well known, opting to give someone their shot to make it as the lead, a la how Footloose turned a young Kevin Bacon into a star. Plus, Julianne Hough is now dating Ryan Seacrest! So there's that, too.
Curious to see how they work the dance scenes and whether they do it with all modern music, or if they pay tribute to the original by including some of those old '80s songs like "Let's hear it for the boy."
What do you want to see with this new Footloose remake? Does it have a chance to succeed like The Karate Kid, or is this a film that truly does belong to another time?
