Robert Rodriguez, who directed seriously gritty films like Sin City, Grindhouse, and The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl 3-D, is in the running to direct a remake of Escape From New York, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

While it's easy to roll your eyes at the idea of reboot with so many in the works at various studios, this one will be executive produced by original Escape director and co-writer John Carpenter and is coming from 20th Century Fox.

THR reports the concept behind the new version is similar to the new series of Planet of the Apes films, which have been successful and critically well-received.

If it's been a while since you've seen this epic cult hit, it originally took place in a grim future where Manhattan was a gigantic prison. Snake Plissken, an eyepatch-wearing badass criminal played to perfection by Kurt Russell, was tapped to go in and rescue the president after Air Force One goes down inside. Watch the trailer for the original above.

Sharkgirl jokes aside, this could be a perfect fit for Rodriguez, who has a gift for down-and-dirty action in the style of his buddy Quentin Tarantino.

Of course we'll miss Kurt Russell as Snake, but he's busy playing a living planet in other films these days.

h/t THR