Jason Statham has been talking about his next project, and it sounds like it might just be starting to pull away from the action film that we've grown to expect from him.

Speaking about the film he says that it's inspired, but in no way a remake, of The Treasure Of The Sierra Madre made by John Huston and starring Humphrey Bogart and Walter Huston.

The Grabbers is the provisional title at the moment, according to Jason Statham himself as he spoke to Empire.

"We've got a movie we're trying to do, written by David and Janet Peoples, in the vein of an old film, The Treasure Of The Sierra Madre...It's not a remake or anything...But it's a little bit like that - about relationships and how greed contaminates the relationships these three people have. The working title is The Grabbers."

The Treasure Of The Sierra Madre is about three men who become gold diggers in central Mexico and the trials they face from the elements, bandits, and most importantly, each other's greed. They head off as friends embarking on a new adventure with the promise of riches, but through time their relationships are affected by their darker sides of greed and paranoia.

Sounds interesting, and the idea that they're taking this idea forward in a modern setting could provide for something really watchable. It does have the promise of much less action and much more thoughtfulness, something that Jason Statham's career could really do with, just look at his role in The Bank Job (Filmstalker review) for what he can do when there's not all out action required.

So I had a quick look at who David and Janet Peoples are on IMDB and was amazed. The names hadn't clicked until I saw that list of films behind them, mainly behind David - Soldier, Twelve Monkeys, Hero, Unforgiven, Ladyhawke (oh come on!) and Blade Runner. Oh yes, I said Blade Runner.

Is this a big break away from action for Statham? If it's a script that holds true to the work already behind the Peoples then it certainly looks set to be. They've produced some great scripts before, and in the hands of a strong director it could be another step towards the dramatic that Statham needs.