Colin Farrell up for Arnie’s original role in upcoming Total Recall remake

Variety reports that Colin Farrell is circling the planet Mars for Hollywood’s upcoming remake of the 1990 cult classic Paul Verhoeven sci-fi film Total Recall. Columbia Pictures has offered Farrell the lead in its new version, beating out other frontrunners like Tom Hardy and Michael Fassbender.

The original version of Total Recall starred Arnold Schwarzenegger as a middle-class construction worker who signs up to have a false memory installed in his subconscious, about an adventure on newly colonized Mars. It was based loosely on the Philip K. Dick novelette We Can Remember It for You Wholesale, though screenwriters Gary Goldman and Ronald Shusett added an entirely new ending.

The new Total Recall, scheduled to be released in late 2011, is set to be directed by Underworld helmer Len Wiseman, to be based on a screenplay by Salt scriptwriter Kurt Wimmer.

Total Recall: The Stats

Original Release Year: 1990
Director: Paul Verhoeven
Cast: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Rachel Ticotin, Sharon Stone, Ronny Cox, Michael Ironside, Marshall Bell, Mel Johnson Jr., Michael Champion, Roy Brocksmith, Ray Baker, Rosemary Dunsmore, David Knell, Alexia Robinson, Dean Norris, Mark Carlton, Debbie Lee Carrington, Lycia Naff, Robert Costanzo