Tyra Banks has revealed her dream casting for the upcoming remake of The Bodyguard. She prefers Taylor Swift and Idris Elba for the iconic roles which were originally played by Whitney Houston and Kevin Costner.
Speaking on Today with Jenna & Friends, Banks endorsed Swift, 35, for the lead role following reports that a new version of the 1992 classic is in development with Eras Tour director Sam Wrench at the helm, according to PEOPLE.
“I’m so beyond excited. That movie is everything,” said Banks, 51.
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About who should take on the Houston role of a famous pop star who falls in love with her bodyguard, Banks suggested, “I think Taylor Swift, ’cause business and commerce, art — she would freakin’ sell like crazy. But, okay, I’m just gonna be real, I’m a Black girl, it was Whitney Houston as a Black girl, Kevin Costner as a White man. What if we flipped it and it was Taylor Swift and Idris Elba? Hot!”
Banks added that she is actively trying to make a movie with Elba, 52, at the moment. “We’re like WhatsApp friends right now. I’m like, ‘Are you down?’ he’s like, ‘Yeah, Banks.’ I’m like, ‘Okay, I’m gonna make this happen.’ I feel like we should do, like, the romance thing.”
Jenna Bush Hager, 43, asked, “Why don’t you be in The Bodyguard?” to which Banks said, “Hell no. We need somebody that can really sing.”
The Bodyguard, the 1992 classic, followed Houston as pop icon Rachel Marron, who hires ex-Secret Service agent Frank Farmer (Costner) to protect her from a stalker.
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As talks of a reboot swirl, some fans are eyeing Swift and Elba — who previously shared the screen in Cats and even crossed paths musically on Swift’s track “London Boy” — as potential leads for the modern remake.
Elba once praised Swift in a March 2019 interview with Variety where he said of his role with her in Cats, “Taylor was great. Her and I had a lot of work to do together, and she was amazing. She worked hard and was just happy to be there.”
Costner is a Swift fan who brought his daughter to see her Eras tour in 2023 and later said of the experience, “I was absolutely blown away watching her art bring so many people together.” Costner and Elba both starred in the 2017 film Molly’s Game.
