Colin Farrell eyed for 'Total Recall' remake

LOS ANGELES – Colin Farrell heads the list of actors being considered to fill the shoes of Arnold Schwarzenegger in a remake of the 1990 sci-fi movie "Total Recall."

Rising stars Tom Hardy ("Inception") and Michael Fassbender ("Inglourious Basterds") are also in the mix for the Columbia Pictures film, which is looking at a late March start with Len Wiseman ("Underworld") behind the camera. No offers have been made to anyone yet.

The project is based on the Philip K. Dick story "We Can Remember It for You Wholesale." It follows a man haunted by a recurring dream of journeying to Mars who buys a literal dream vacation from a company called Rekall Inc., which sells implanted memories. The man comes to believe he is a secret agent and ends up on a Martian colony, where he fights to overthrow a despotic ruler controlling the production of air.

One big question is how the remake, with a script by Kurt Wimmer ("Salt"), will tackle one of Dick's favorite topics, reality vs. delusion, with audiences never knowing whether the movie was a dream. Christopher Nolan just reinvigorated the concept with the detailed dreamscapes he built into "Inception."

But a bigger question is whether the actors the studio is keen on are available.

Farrell just might be, although the Irish actor will likely star alongside Eric Bana in "Up in the Air" co-writer Sheldon Turner's crime drama "By Virtue Fall," which will shoot in January. He would be finished in time to jump right into "Recall."

If Farrell does head to Mars, it will be his second shot at a high-profile Hollywood career. Since appearing in studio movies such as "Daredevil," "S.W.A.T.," "Miami Vice" and "Alexander," the actor has lately been sticking to lower-budgeted homegrown fare, such as an uncredited role in the Oscar-winner "Crazy Heart."

But he recently wrapped DreamWorks' 3D remake of "Fright Night," in which he plays the villainous vampire, as well as New Line's "Horrible Bosses," in which he plays one of the jefes in question.

Hardy, meanwhile, has found his dance card filling up ever since appearing in Nolan's "Inception." The English actor is currently in Vancouver shooting "This Means War," the McG-directed movie which stars Chris Pine and Reese Witherspoon. In addition, his 2011 is already packed. He is said to be reteaming with Nolan for the filmmaker's third Batman movie, which shoots in the spring and summer. In the fall, Hardy will star in the Mad Max sequel "Fury Road."

Fassbender, another rising star thanks to his turn in "Inglourious Basterds," is in pre-production on "Shame," an indie being directed by Steve McQueen, and is also shooting "X-Men: First Class" in England.