Years ago, Mel Gibson toplined an unexpectedly charming rom-com alongside Helen Hunt titled What Women Want. The idea behind it, simple as it was, gave Gibson's advertising executive -- a textbook alpha male -- the ability all of a sudden to hear the thoughts women around him were having. Naturally, Gibson's character used this gift to get ahead in business, and win the heart of Hunt's competitor. What Women Want had heart and humor, and that same formula looks to be applied to the female remake, What Men Want, starring Taraji P. Henson. The first trailer just dropped. Give it a look:
Thinking she's about to make partner at her firm, Ali (Taraji P. Henson) grows furious at the Boys' Club mentality that leads to her getting passed over. In an effort to get ahead in the cutthroat industry, she visits a psychic... and slams her head into a table during a nightclub visit. Somewhere along the way (be it the tea, or the head slam), Ali wakes up with the ability to hear men's inner-most thoughts. And all hell breaks loose form there.
The hook of What Men Want is that the main character has to go from seeing the newfound power as a blessing, and not a curse. Sure, Ali (Henson) can probably do without knowing that she is walking through a cloud of farts left in her path by a parking attendant. No one needs to know that. But by the end of this initial trailer, Ali is using her gift to get the better hand on a gaggle of celebrity cameo poker players, including Mark Cuban, Tracy Morgan, Grant Hill and Shaquille O'Neal. That looks like it's going to be a fun scene.
There's a huge component of What Women Want, the 2000 Mel Gibson and Helen Hunt version of the story, that isn't prevalent in the trailer for What Men Want... so far, anyway. Gibson eventually uses this power to get into the inner thoughts of his lovely competitor. Will there be a love interest in the cards for Taraji P. Henson's Ali? I'd bet cold hard cash on it happening, but we have months until this one hits theaters in January, so expect a full trailer later on this year.
Here's the biggest thing you need to know about What Men Want. It's being brought to theaters by producer Will Packer, the driving force behind Girls Trip and Ride Along. Pairing his creativity with Taraji P. Henson's go-for-broke comedy seems like a great fit. We'll see what they have come up with when What Men Want -- co-starring Aldis Hodge, Tracy Morgan, Wendi McLendon-Covey, Pete Davidson and Max Greenfield -- opens in theaters on January 11, 2019.
