Add this to the “What Could Have Been” file: at one point, producer Joel Silver came up with a great idea for a Demolition Man sequel. This proposed sequel would find Sylvester Stallone‘s cop from the past trapped in the future reuniting with his daughter – who is now older than he is. And that’s not all. Silver wanted none other than Meryl Streep to play Stallone’s long-lost offspring.

I don’t know if this would’ve been a good idea, or the best idea ever, but if the stars had aligned right many years ago, we might’ve had a Demolition Man sequel. In case you’re unfamiliar with the flick, here’s the gist: in the futuristic year of 1996 (the film came out in 1993), rule-breaking LAPD cop John Spartan (Stallone) attempts to stop his arch nemesis, flamboyant criminal Simon Phoenix (Wesley Snipes). Things backfire, and Spartan ends up accidentally killing a bunch of civilians. As punishment, both Spartan and Phoenix are cryogenically frozen. In 2032, Phoenix is thawed out for a parole hearing. The psychotic criminal escapes, and finds himself in a much-changed world. Everything, and everyone, is extremely pleasant and courteous, and the cops don’t even carry guns anymore. Phoenix is a criminal from another place and time, which means the authorities need a cop from another place and time to stop him. So they thaw out John Spartan, and he and Phoenix end up blowing a bunch of shit up trying to kill each other. Sandra Bullock is there as well.

Demolition Man was a box office hit, and has gone on to achieve cult status. Just recently, Taco Bell unveiled a Demolition Man-inspired installation at Comic-Con. But unlike most Stallone-driven box office hits, it never got a sequel. But during a recent episode of the Projection Booth Podcast, Demolition Man co-writer Daniel Waters revealed that a sequel could have happened. The original film had a subplot about Spartan reconnecting with his daughter, who is now older than he is since he’s been frozen for so many years. This storyline was cut from the final film, but Demolition Man producer Joel Silver thought it would be the perfect launchpad for the sequel. And he wanted Meryl Streep to play Stallone’s grown-up daughter. Here’s how Waters describes it on the podcast:

“I get a call from Joel. ‘What do you think of this? Meryl Streep is Stallone’s daughter for the sequel. What do you think?’ I’m like ‘Okay, you get Meryl on the set and I’ll come out.'”

Needless to say, this didn’t happen. And it’s not clear if Silver ever attempted to get Streep involved in the film, or if it was just a crazy pipe-dream he had. If Silver did offer Streep the part, one can safely assume she turned it down immediately while laughing. Meryl Streep playing Sylvester Stallone’s daughter in a Demolition Man sequel is just too…unlikely. Streep dabbled in the action movie genre briefly by appearing in the 1994 thriller The River Wild, and she recently stared in the action-packed thrill-ride Florence Foster Jenkins, but I can’t picture her shooting laser guns in the future with Sylvester Stallone.

But if that had happened, I would’ve watched it in a heartbeat. And so would you – don’t even try to deny it.