Al Pacino Wants Timothée Chalamet to Star in ‘Heat’ Prequel Based on New Novel

Timothée Chalamet could be turning up the heat this summer.

During a 2022 Tribeca Talk following a screening of the new 4K restoration of 1995 thriller “Heat,” star Al Pacino revealed that he hopes Chalamet takes on the role of detective Vincent Hanna in a prequel film. Pacino played Vincent in the original Michael Mann cat-and-mouse film, opposite Robert De Niro as criminal Neil McCauley.

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Director Mann co-wrote “Heat 2,” an upcoming prequel/sequel novel to the film, with Edgar-winning crime writer Meg Gardiner. Guests at the Tribeca Talk were gifted a preview copy of the book, spurring a discussion as to who would play each character if the novel were adapted for the big screen.

While Pacino shouted “Timothée Chalamet!” to applause, De Niro stayed mum about his dream casting for the character of Neil.

Mann’s “Heat 2” includes events both before and after the first film, including an origin story for Neil as a rising criminal battling PTSD after returning from serving in the Vietnam War.

“It’s been my intention for a long time to do the further stories of ‘Heat,’” Mann told Deadline. “There was always a rich history or backstory about the events in these people’s lives before 1995 in ‘Heat’ and projection of where their lives would take them after.”

The book will be released August 9 from the HarperCollins imprint Michael Mann Books, and marks the director’s debut as a novelist after screenwriting nearly all of his own films, including “Ali” and “Miami Vice.”

However, Pacino’s wish for Chalamet to star may not come to light: Chalamet has four projects currently in the works, ranging from lending his voice to Kid Cudi’s animated Netflix series “Entergalactic” and reprising his lead role for fantasy epic “Dune 2.”

Plus, Chalamet has the Golden Ticket for “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” prequel “Wonka,” playing the mysterious candy man Willy Wonka. Chalamet is also teaming up again with “Call Me By Your Name” director Luca Guadagnino for the cannibal love story “Bones and All.” The movie is finished, according to director Guadagnino, and is expected to hit the fall festivals. It also stars Taylor Russell, Mark Rylance, Chloe Sevigny, and Michael Stuhlbarg.

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