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John Abraham and Abhishek Bachchan were finally reuniting after 13 years for the Hindi remake of last year's Malayalam blockbuster, Ayyappanum Koshiyum. Following their unforgettable bromance in Dostana (2008), the two were supposed to be seen in diametrically opposite roles in this action-thriller. Filmmaker Jagan Shakti who's been assigned to direct this film had already begun the pre-production work to begin the shooting from November. However, the John-Abhishek reunion hit a roadblock after the latter backed out of the film early this month. And ever since Jr. Bachchan's exit has been made public, speculations are doing rounds about his replacement and the fate of the film.
Now, Peepingmoon.com has learned that the Ayyappanum Koshiyum Hindi remake is definitely happening, and the makers have already finalized the second lead against John Abraham. Sources have informed us that Arjun Kapoor has been brought on board as the replacement of Abhishek Bachchan and is set to collaborate with John for the second time after their upcoming Mohit Suri thriller Ek Villain Returns. This yet-untitled Hindi remake will again see the two clashing with each other, however, this time it'll not be the action-oriented fight but rather the battle of egos between a well-connected, wealthy and influential ex-Hawildar and an upright police officer.
We've also learned that Abhishek Bachchan backed out of the film amicably due to date issues. The Big Bull actor's dates were apparently clashing with the shooting timelines of Amazon Prime's Breathe Season 3 that Abhishek had committed to way before the John Abraham production. The Jr. Bachchan talked to John and they friendly decided to skip it and collaborate on some other project later. John then offered the film to Arjun who immediately agreed to come on board. This casting change, however, has delayed the film further and it'll now go on floors in January 2022.
John Abraham is currently shooting for Shah Rukh Khan's Pathan and will soon head to Spain for its final international stint. He will next be seen in Milap Zaveri's masala entertainer Satyameva Jayate 2 which is expected to release in theatres later this year. Apart from the acting assignments, he is creatively also involved with his production ventures that include the remake of Malayalam film Nayattu, and a slice-of-life drama Tara Vs Bilal starring Harshvardhan Rane. Arjun Kapoor, meanwhile, is currently gearing up for the Disney+Hotstar premiere of his horror-comedy Bhoot Police that also stars Saif Ali Khan, Yami Gautam, and Jacqueline Fernandez in lead roles. He will shoot for the recently announced Aasmaan Bharadwaj debut directorial Kuttey sometime in November!
