The first trailer for the Road House remake shows Conor McGregor as villain Knox, making him the biggest and best surprise of the movie so far.
The remake of the 1989 action movie Road House has a couple of surprises up its sleeve, but the biggest and best one so far is UFC fighter Conor McGregor. The latest movie to join the never-ending trend of remakes is Road House, originally directed by Rowdy Herrington and starring Patrick Swayze as James Dalton. The new Road House is directed by Doug Liman and stars Jake Gyllenhaal as Elwood Dalton, a former UFC middleweight fighter.
Road House follows Dalton as he takes a job as a bouncer at a Florida Keys roadhouse. Dalton’s talents are just what the place needs as it has been attracting the wrong people, but he soon discovers that this place is far from the paradise everyone thinks it is, and it’s actually quite a violent and dark place. Also starring in Road House are Daniela Melchior as Dalton’s love interest (played in the original movie by Kelly Lynch), Billy Magnussen, Jessica Williams, and Conor McGregor, the latter being the movie’s biggest and best surprise so far.
Why Conor McGregor Is Such A Surprising Choice For Road House
Conor McGregor is a professional mixed martial artist and professional boxer, with a prolific career in both that has led to his worldwide fame. McGregor’s popularity has gone beyond the octagon and boxing ring, and his life and career have been the subject of two documentaries: Conor McGregor: Notorious, in 2017, and McGregor Forever, in 2023. However, McGregor hadn’t made a transition from professional athlete to actor until now, as he’s part of the cast of Road House as an actual character rather than playing himself.
Details about McGregor’s role are still unknown (except for his name, Knox, revealed in the trailer) but the first Road House trailer makes it clear that he has a substantial role in the story. McGregor is playing a ruthless villain who isn’t scared to fight Dalton, and he quickly shows he’s a dangerous match for Dalton’s fighting skills. McGregor has no acting experience, but judging by the trailer, it looks like he will be very good at playing Knox – and, of course, his action scenes will be some of the best in the movie.
It’s surprising that Liman and company chose a fighter with no acting experience to play the villain in Road House rather than having him in a smaller role (which has happened with many other athletes, just to draw more attention to the movie), but McGregor suits the role quite well.
Conor McGregor Is Already Shaping Up To Be The Perfect Road House Villain
Road House’s Knox is Conor McGregor’s first acting role, but he’s already shaping up to be the perfect villain for this project, proving the skeptics wrong. It’s not just that McGregor’s experience as a fighter comes in very handy for Road House due to its action scenes, but McGregor’s image lends itself well to his performance. McGregor has earned a reputation for his behavior and temper, giving him a “villain” image in real life, which Road House is definitely seizing by having him play Knox.
Jake Gyllenhaal’s Dalton will have various violent encounters with Conor McGregor’s Knox throughout Road House, with the latter even shown setting what looks like a street market on fire and enjoying it, hinting at Knox being more toward a psychopathic type of villain rather than just a man looking for revenge or something more. Road House is already looking quite promising thanks to the big surprise of Conor McGregor playing the villain and doing it quite well, and it’s to be seen if the movie will succeed in other areas, as well.
