Patrick Schwarzenegger in Talks for the Lead Role in the "American Psycho" Remake
Austin Butler was originally supposed to play Patrick Bateman
Ever since it was announced that "Challengers" director Luca Guadagnino was working on a remake of "American Psycho", the rumor mill has been buzzing. Now something seems to be happening with regard to the lead role, for which Patrick Schwarzenegger is in talks, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Although Oscar nominee Austin Butler was briefly considered the favorite, Schwarzenegger seems to be a serious contender at the moment. Insiders report that he is indeed on the producers' radar. The son of Hollywood legend Arnold Schwarzenegger celebrated his breakthrough with the comedy "Scouts Guide to the Zombie Apocalypse". He was most recently seen in the third season of the acclaimed HBO series "The White Lotus".
When asked by The Hollywood Reporter whether "American Psycho" was one of his career goals, Schwarzenegger answered diplomatically – he didn't name the movie, but he did name the director:
"At the top of the list is working with someone like Luca."
According to initial information, the reinterpretation will deviate from the original story and be set in the present day instead of the 80s. "American Psycho" tells the story of investment banker Patrick Bateman, whose life is characterized by ideals of beauty, luxury goods and belonging to the upper class. Behind the façade, however, is a serial killer who primarily targets young women. A release date for the new adaptation is not yet known.
Blood, Madness, and High Gloss: 7 Film Picks for Fans of American Psycho
Those who love "American Psycho" are usually not just looking for a thriller. They are looking for the sharp, the cold, the insane. Films in which high gloss meets blood, in which superficiality becomes a mask for inner emptiness – and in which violence is worth a thousand words. Anyone who is fascinated by Patrick Bateman's madness will also find what they are looking for in these seven movies. Here are film tips that carry on the spirit of "American Psycho" in a variety of ways – sometimes satirical, sometimes brutal, but always disturbing.
Nightcrawler (2014, Dan Gilroy)
Jake Gyllenhaal plays Lou Bloom, a restless outsider who works his way up in the world of sensationalist journalism as a "stringer" – a freelance cameraman for night-time accident and crime footage. Lou is smooth, polite, greedy – and completely unscrupulous. If you liked Patrick Bateman's cold ambitions and double life, Lou's uncanny rise will give you goosebumps.
The House That Jack Built (2018, Lars von Trier)
This movie is not for the faint-hearted. Matt Dillon plays serial killer Jack, who commits a series of brutal murders over several years – presenting a disturbing mix of art, philosophy and madness. Like Bateman, Jack is an intellectualized psychopath with narcissistic delusions of grandeur. The movie is disturbing, over-the-top and incredibly uncompromising all at once.
Gone Girl (2014, David Fincher)
The focus here is not on the male psychopath, but on a woman who has mastered the game of truth, deception and violence. Amy Dunne (Rosamund Pike) stages her disappearance with a coldness that would make Patrick Bateman proud. The movie is a dark game of media imagery, gender stereotypes, and manipulation – made for fans of cold style and psychological depth.
Velvet Buzzsaw (2019, Dan Gilroy)
A satirical horror trip through the L.A. art scene – full of over-the-top characters caught between commerce and art. The film combines social criticism with surreal horror elements reminiscent of "American Psycho": a beautiful exterior meets an ugly core. Here, too, it is greed and ego that ultimately lead to madness.
You Were Never Really Here (2017, Lynne Ramsay)
Joaquin Phoenix plays a quiet, inwardly broken hitman who frees girls from forced prostitution – with brutal efficiency. Unlike Bateman, this killer is driven by trauma, not vanity. But here, too, violence, alienation and a surreal visual language dominate, drawing the viewer deep into a fragmented psyche.
The Neon Demon (2016, Nicolas Winding Refn)
A visually stunning but deeply disturbing film about beauty mania, envy and cannibalism in the fashion environment. Elle Fanning plays the naive Jesse, who becomes a projection of desire and hatred in L.A.'s fashion scene. As in "American Psycho", aesthetics are everything here – and that is precisely what makes the action so cruel and ice-cold.
American Mary (2012, Jen & Sylvia Soska)
A dark independent horror film about a medical student (Katharine Isabelle) who slips into the world of illegal body modification due to personal crises. Mary is a female version of Bateman: cool, controlled and full of revenge. The movie plays with themes such as the body, identity and violence – disturbing and stylized to the end.
Conclusion
Anyone who sees "American Psycho" as more than just a slasher film – as a razor-sharp satire of society – will find worthy successors in these seven movies. They all play with surfaces and appearances, revealing what happens when the polished exterior begins to crack and the monster beneath emerges. Whether in the art world, the media, on the streets, or deep within the human psyche – madness wears many faces.