In the 1970s, Col. Steve Austin wasn't just "the man," he was The Six Million Dollar Man. With bionic enhancements, and skills in espionage and ass-kicking, Austin gave the kids of his era all the non-stop action that television would allow. So with a modern reboot in the making, The Six Billion Dollar Man is adjusted for inflation and has actor Mark Wahlberg starring in the lead role. But what it doesn't have is the trappings of the superhero genre, specifically the outlandish costuming.
During the festivities for Transformers: The Last Knight at CinemaCon, Mark Wahlberg spoke with ComicBook.com about The Six Billion Dollar Man. Their chat was fruitful, as the actor had some interesting details for the presumably dormant project. As it turns out, that assumption couldn't be further from the truth, as Mark Wahlberg gave the following update:
We finally got the script for The Six Billion Dollar Man. Now that's not your typical superhero because I will not put on a cape nor a spandex outfit, but the script is amazing.
With a script in hand, presumably written by writer-director Damian Szifron, who was last mentioned as attached to serve in both capacities, The Six Billion Dollar Man most certainly doesn't look like it'll be making the original 2017 release date that it was previously penciled in for. Unless, of course, the powers of Col. Austin's super-speed can be applied to the film-making process. But even more interesting is Mark Wahlberg's remarks about how his portrayal of the legendary man of scientific advancement will be sticking to his roots rather than getting a ridiculous costume that'd put the film more in line with the modern superhero genre.
The original Six Million Dollar Man certainly never wore anything in the neighborhood of a superhero's uniform. In fact, the most outrageous outfits he was ever known for wearing was his famous red track suit, or his original NASA uniform from back in his astronaut days. That's because The Six Billion Dollar Man is more of a spy, and he wasn't exactly too thrilled with that career either. If anything, the sci-fi flourishes extended to Steve Austin's powers and enhancements, rather than the world at large. To give him any sort of weird outfits or any other trappings of a superhero movie would betray the character, as well as the entire project itself.
It may not be as far along as we originally thought it was, but The Six Billion Dollar Man looks like it's in good shape to get started in the near future. In fact, the film is looking to get underway with the shooting process this fall, so as soon as we have more information in hand, we'll give you the details. Meanwhile, you can see Mark Wahlberg next in Transformers: The Last Knight, which opens on June 23rd.
