John Travolta has joined the cast of Tony Scott's upcoming remake of The Taking of Pelham 123. According to Variety, Denzel Washington will headline the thriller.

Travolta is all set to play the gang leader that hijacks a New York subway train, threatening to kill its passengers if his ransom demands aren't met. Robert Shaw played the character in the original 1974 film.

Davie Koepp is responsible for updating the screenplay. The film will go before the cameras in early January of next year.

The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3 was released June 12th, 2009 and stars Denzel Washington, John Travolta, Luis Guzmán, Victor Gojcaj, John Turturro, Michael Rispoli, Ramon Rodriguez, James Gandolfini. The film is directed by Tony Scott.