Decades have done nothing to diminish the impact of Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer, the grim serial killer thriller that launched the careers of star Michael Rooker and director John McNaughton. Now the pair are looking to do it again with the vigilante film Road Rage.
Per Deadline, Road Rage is intended to be the first in a series.
The film “will center on a serial killer who only kills those who deserve to die—presenting a modern hero who is a bad guy gone good, protecting the innocent and punishing the guilty.”
“I’d wanted to work with Michael Rooker again since Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer, but we never got the chance. Finally, I wrote a story that took the genre in a whole new direction,” McNaughton told the outlet. “Michael Rooker as Stony; he drives a truck… and kills people. Stony is the ultimate serial killer… with a twist, and he’s going home now after twenty years, to settle a score from the past.”
Tim Perell will produce the vigilante thriller through his banner, Process Media, and said, “With Road Rage, John McNaughton and Michael Rooker aim once again to create a transgressive and shocking film that will exist at the cutting edge of art and genre. As Henry was ahead of its time, so Road Rage will be ahead of this time; both a disturbing and exhilarating reflection of contemporary American culture.”
Rooker’s memorable turn as serial killer Henry Lee Lucas shoots this project to the top of hotly anticipated titles in the works.
Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer plot synopsis: “Recently released from prison, the nomadic Henry (Rooker) finds temporary abode in the rundown Chicago lodgings of a former jail acquaintance and small-time drug dealer, Otis (Tom Towles). Hiding behind his unremarkable employment as a pest exterminator, Henry leads a double life, prowling the streets by night on a brutal and apparently motiveless killing spree. As the bodies mount up, Otis finds himself inducted into Henry’s dark secret world, but when Otis’ sister Becky (Tracy Arnold) moves in, herself fleeing from an uncomfortable domestic situation, it quickly becomes apparent that two’s company, but three’s a crowd.”
In addition to Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer, McNaughton’s films include Mad Dog and Glory. Rooker’s credits include Suicide Squad, “The Walking Dead,” and Slither.
Stay tuned for more details as they arrive.