A quarter of a century after the 1994 Jim Carrey comedy hit theaters, Dark House Comics founder Mike Richardson thinks we’re finally ready for The Mask reboot (please, for the love of god, forget the film’s 2005 sequel, Son of the Mask). In a recent interview with Forbes, Richardson, who originated the concept for the supernatural, chaos-inducing mask, shared his idea for a female-driven film, but left out his preferred casting choice.
“I’d like to see a really good physical comedian [in the role],†he explained. “I have one in mind, but I’m not gonna say her name. We have to do a lot of convincing for this particular actor, but we’ll see.†Said Richardson, “You never know what’s coming in the future. We have some ideas.â€
This hypothetical Mask would, in Richardson’s mind, hew closer to the original comic book’s darker, more unhinged (oh, more Joker-like!) story. “I’d like it to be another character film about a person dealing with absolute power,†he continued. “The whole theme of The Mask was we all say what we would do if we had absolute power, just like Stanley Ipkiss. When we get absolute power, we often resort to the most petty of endeavors and it’s overcoming our human nature and using the power for good. Stan Lee said, ‘with great power comes great responsibility,’ but my thing is an older axiom, which is ‘absolute power corrupts absolutely.’â€
But on to the more important question: Which female comedian are we talking about here? Melissa McCarthy? Kristen Wiig? Who is giving Mike Richardson malevolent Lady Stanley Ipkiss vibes that isn’t immediately coming to mind?