Larry Charles Writing, May Direct 'The Man Who Sued God' Remake

Larry Charles (Curb Your Enthusiasm, Seinfeld, Borat) has been hired to write a remake of The Man Who Sued God, the 2001 Australian film that was a tidy hit in its home country when released almost fifteen years ago.

And while the decision hasn't been made yet, Charles could end up directing as well, making it his follow-up to the Sacha Baron Cohen comedy The Dictator. (He's also done some television in the interim.) The original film starred Billy Connolly and Judy Davis in a story about a man whose fishing boat is destroyed by lightning. Angry at his insurance company's refusal to cover his claim, which the company labels an "act of God," the man files suit against the Creator himself.

Deadline has the details, saying that Charles will "put his own spin on the original film's premise." There's more to the story than just the simple premise of filing suit against God. In the original film, the angry man names church officials as God's representatives, and therefore those who must stand as defendants in court. That leads to a little problem. Either they say, yes, lightning is an act of God, and therefore accept responsibility for the damages. Or they deny the "act of God" notion, and therefore deny God himself.

There's clearly a lot of room in the concept for further exploration. In the original, the whole trial becomes the object of media fascination, and presumably that's an angle that would be carried forward into the new take.

Here's a trailer for the original film: