Yesterday's News Today: Idris Elba replaced as Alex Cross by Tyler Perry(!?)

See, this is another reason why it's so hard to write about real news. Even when something is absolutely confirmed as factual, it can still end up being wholly changed or retracted a few months later. I went into my whole spiel about the Alex Cross series back in August of 2010, so I'll try not to repeat myself. Short version: Idris Elba will make a great Alex Cross, and the James Patterson detective-superhero novels are the very kind of pulp fiction that should be made into a franchise. Oh, and the kind of star-driven mid-budget thrillers that the Morgan Freeman two-film franchise (Kiss the Girls and Along Came A Spider) represented the sort of adult-skewing genre picture that rarely gets made anymore now that so many studios are 'all tentpoles, all the time'. Well, the new story is that Rob Cohen (The Fast and the Furious, Dragonheart, XXX, etc) is directing, and Idris Elba has been replaced by none-other than Tyler Perry. Yes, THAT Tyler Perry.

I've been saying for years that Perry has a big enough following that putting him into mainstream vehicles is a no-brainer. Whether he end up as Adam Sandler's pal or the new Axel Foley, Mr. Perry is a genuine box office draw that could only be an asset to any franchise. And let's be honest, at this point, Beverly Hills Cop IV starring Tyler Perry would be more bankable than Beverly Hills Cop IV with Eddie Murphy. And it is indeed commercial considerations that led to the new deal, where the untested (as a standalone lead) Idris Elba was swapped out for the man who built his own empire. While I cannot pretend that Tyler Perry 'looks' the part, that's what personal trainers are for. To answer the next question, yes he can act when he has to. Most of the people who will carp over this news have never actually seen a Perry film, and they only know of Madea in theory (or short clips). Point being, Perry has acted in several of his films, and he's always been more than serviceable. Ironically, he is at his weakest as an actor when he's forced to act as 'Brian Simmons' against Madea herself, which of course forces the un-costumed Perry to act at nothing. His supporting roles in the Why Did I Get Married series and The Family That Preys (still his best film) show a willingness to cede the flashier moments to the other performers.

Still, despite the fact that I'm a bend-over-backward to be fair 'fan' of Tyler Perry's work, I still must admit that I don't think he's right for Alex Cross. Having said that, as a fan of Perry and of the character, I'd be happy to be proven wrong. Token irony alert: Idris Elba's first lead role in an American film was indeed Tyler Perry's Daddy's Little Girls back in 2007. I, Alex Cross will begin shooting in June. As always, we'll see.

Scott Mendelson