Where does one go after escaping from New York and Los Angeles? Space, of course. Following “Escape from L.A.,” John Carpenter reportedly considered taking the franchise to space with a project called “Escape from Mars,” but that never materialized. However, the idea supposedly informed the director’s 2001 space-western, “Ghosts of Mars,” which sees Ice Cube, Jason Statham, Pam Grier, and Natasha Henstridge forced to contend with demonic Martians. Carpenter hasn’t confirmed if “Ghosts of Mars” was originally imagined as a Snake Plissken adventure, but it’s an interesting idea nonetheless. But will he ever take Snake to the red planet?
Carpenter hasn’t commented on returning to this world, but that doesn’t mean he’s fully retired. Earlier this year, he told Variety that he’s open to directing again, but there are conditions attached. “I’m open to it, given that it’s honestly budgeted and there’s plenty of time to do it — and that people allow for the basketball season and the playoffs,” the director said. Whether or not he’s keen to give Plissken one last hurrah remains to be seen.
Of course, Hollywood probably won’t finance a new Snake Plissken movie with Kurt Russell and Carpenter attached any time soon. As of this writing, the plan is to give the franchise a fresh coat of paint, with a new filmmaking team at the helm.
