Wahlberg, Neeson Offered NEUROMANCER

The big screen adaptation of William Gibson’s seminal cyberpunk classic, Neuromancer, the visionary 1984 novel best known for its predictions about the Internet has been in the works for some time with director Vincenzo Natali (Splice) at the helm.

Now comes word from Moviehole that Mark Wahlberg and Liam Neeson have reportedly been offered two of the most important roles in the film; Wahlberg has been given the call for the part of Case, the story’s protagonist — a cyber cowboy, hacker, thief and drug addict, and Neeson has had the offer to play Armitage, a shady ex-military officer who offers Case a cure if he completes a risky, off the books hacking job – Armitage will repair Case’s brain in exchange for a help with a dangerous secret mission against some powerful organizations.

About the influence of a far younger sci-fi giant, The Matrix, Natali said in an interview with Slash Film last year:

…The Matrix, for instance, gives you is the opportunity to make ‘Neuromancer’ in a culture that is already aware of what The Matrix is. I mean, the very word ‘matrix’ is in Neuromancer. It was borrowed by the Wachowski brothers for their film. I think that’s a good thing, because I don’t even know how someone would have been able to make that film 10 years ago or 15 years ago, because it’s so abstract. I don’t even know how people understood the book when it first came out. I think I read it in the late 1980s, but in 1984, how would people even understand it, because it was just so far ahead of the curve?

Sci-fi horror Splice producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura is also involved in the project, which production will allegedly start after Natali is done with a ghost movie Haunter.

2014 release is possible coinciding with the 30th anniversary of the novel’s publication.

Do you find that Wahlberg seems completely wrong for the role?