Non-Kenny Rogers 'The Gambler' Now Being Remade by Todd Phillips

When a remake of 1974's The Gambler was announced this time last year, the original film's screenwriter James Toback had to find out from greasy Brett Ratner that Paramount was prepping to overhaul his story with the help of Martin Scorsese, Leonardo DiCaprio, and The Departed writer William Monahan. Despite that impressive pedigree, Toback was so pissed that his personal tale of gambling addiction was in someone else's hands that he wrote a lengthy open letter about his consternation. Today, Paramount issued their considerably more succinct response: fine, then, we'll have the director of Starsky & Hutch do it.

According to THR, the studio's remake of their once-James-Caan-starring film could be handed to Todd Phillips for him to direct immediately after he finishes making a third Hangover. Though Phillips' work in fiction has thus far remained largely in the realm of juvenile, fraternal comedy--his résumé also includes Road Trip, Old School, and Due Date--there are reportedly no plans to alter the tone of the film. The Gambler will remain a crime drama, wherein any tooth loss or genital mutilation incurred is purely the result of the lead character's debt to the mob. But you should probably start thinking less Leonardo DiCaprio, more Vince Vaughn.