Shane Black On Bringing Parker To The Screen In Play Dirty

Never before has Parker, the professional thief of Donald E. Westlake’s novels, officially made it to the substantial screen. Which is strange, since several of Westlake’s Parker novels have, in fact, been adapted into movies – like John Boorman’s 1967 Point Blank, John Flynn’s 1973 The Outfit, and Brian Helgeland’s 1999 Payback. In all of those, the Parker role went under a different moniker, due to Westlake’s insistence that the character only be properly named should a franchise of films arise. Enter Shane Black, whose Play Dirty is – at long last – giving us Parker. Even though this one, technically, is not directly based on any of Westlake’s novels.

It’s fair to say that Black is a huge fan of the oeuvre, though. “I used to say that if noir was a fine whiskey, Westlake’s the stuff you’d keep behind the bar,” the filmmaker tells Empire. “It’s the good stuff.” His Parker is played by Mark Wahlberg, who stepped in shortly after Black’s Kiss Kiss Bang Bang alumnus Robert Downey Jr. passed on the project. Wahlberg had the right air that Black was looking for, in a story that sees Parker attempt to pull off a super high-stakes billion-dollar heist. “He wanted to play it straight and tough,” says Black of Wahlberg’s characterisation. “It’s important that this be an edgy version of Parker.”

Whether or not Black continues to steer things, Westlake may finally get his wish for a string of Parker features. “There’s a franchise there to be had, if someone wants it,” Black says. “I have other projects I’d like to do on my own, just to write and see if anyone likes them. But I am not averse to a Parker sequel.” Who fancies a couple of shots of the good stuff?

Read Empire’s full Play Dirty story – talking to Shane Black about bringing Parker to the screen – in The Running Man issue, on sale Thursday 28 August. Order a copy online here. Play Dirty streams on Prime Video from 1 October.