It appears Tom Cruise has called dibs on a remake of classic western The Magnificent Seven.

This is the film that shot Steve McQueen to fame in 1960, though Yul Brynner was ostensibly the star of the show as the leader of a gang hired to protect a Mexican village from marauding bandits.

There’s no word as yet on which role TC has in mind and presumably, he’ll make a final decision on whether or not to saddle up after seeing the script. The suits at MGM have only just put out the call for a screenwriter, according to Variety. 

Of course, a star as big as Cruise will likely have creative input, but if he’s eying the Brynner role, he’ll still have to guard against young McQueen wannabes trying to upstage him. The King of Cool made Brynner hot under the collar with a habit of catching flies in his hat while the star was trying to deliver his lines.

Famously, McQueen complained that Brynner had a bigger horse than he did, so appeared taller on screen.

Studio sources insist the remake is still a long way off, which gives Cruise just enough time to genetically engineer some sort of equine giant.