Austin Butler to Star in ‘American Psycho’ Remake

The new American Psycho: Austin Butler.

According to Variety, the Elvis and Dune: Part Two star has been tapped to play the role of Patrick Bateman in the new adaptation of Bret Easton Ellis’ famous 1991 novel. The new film will be directed by Call Me By Your Name and Challengers’ Luca Guadagnino.

The trade reports that “under the lens of Guadagnino … the new take on the book could have a larger erotic emphasis than the original horror satire. Guadagnino has also dabbed into genre in Suspiria and Bones and All. While Butler is attached to play the lead role in the movie, Guadagnino might have have interpreted the Patrick Bateman character in a much different way than its previous incarnation.”

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The original film adaptation of American Psycho came out in 2000. Directed by Mary Harron, the film became the breakthrough role for a young Christian Bale. The movie did modestly well in theaters then became a major cult hit on home video. It later inspired a direct-to-video sequel, American Psycho 2, starring Mila Kunis.

Since then, Ellis’ novel has also be turned into an American Psycho stage musical (which included Huey Lewis’ “Hip to be Square” and Phil Collins’ “In the Air Tonight” as musical numbers). The show premiered on Broadway in the spring of 2016, but only lasted for about 80 performances.

It may not feel like it when you watch it now, but Harron’s American Psycho is now almost a quarter of a century old. So there’s surely something that could be done with a modern update of that material. Frankly, American Psycho may be more relevant now than ever, and Guadagnino showed with his Suspiria that he is more than capable of making a solid remake of a film widely regarded as a classic. Paired with Butler, the project could be quite interesting.