Movie News: Sean Penn As ‘The Gunman’; Drew Goddard Drops ‘Daredevil’; Trailer for Denzel Washington’s ‘The Equalizer’

The Gunman: A new photo for The Gunman reveals Sean Penn ready for action. The action movie, in which Penn plays a former special forces soldier suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, has now been scheduled for release on February 20, 2015. Javier Bardem and Idris Elba also star in the European-set thriller. [Collider]

Daredevil: Writer/director Drew Goddard has departed Marvel’s upcoming small-screen version of Daredevil. Goddard was set as showrunner last November, but since then he got the job of writing and directing the Spider-Man spin-off movie The Sinister Six. In his place, Steven DeKnight has been hired as Daredevil showrunner; he and Goddard worked together on TV’s Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel. More recently, DeKnight served as showrunner for Spartacus (on Starz); Daredevil will premiere on Netflix in 2015. [The Hollywood Reporter]

Score: Don Johnson’s performance as a plantation owner in Quentin Tarantino’s Django Unchained certainly reminded everyone of his range as an actor, and now he wants to show off his other skills. He has written a script titled Score, in which he would play an “outrageous” college football coach in the 1980s who breaks all the rules; David Gordon Greeen (TV’s Eastbound and Down, in which Johnson co-starred) will direct. It’s not a done deal yet; first, Johnson needs to secure financing, and then he plans to release it via streaming platforms. [Grantland via SlashFilm]

The Equalizer Trailer: A new trailer for The Equalizer is filled with stylish action and the quiet, cool confidence of Denzel Washington. In the big-screen version of the 80s TV show, he plays a former government agent who comes to the aid of a young woman (Chloe Grace Moretz), running afoul of the Russian mob in the process. Melissa Leo also stars; the movie opens on September 26. [Vulture]