Haas and Brandt Hired to Write Wanted Sequel
reader Editor E has passed along word that screenwriters Derek Haas and Michael Brandt have already been hired by Universal to pen a sequel to Wanted. Derek Haas revealed that
“We’re just finishing up a book adaptation for Universal of the James Siegel novel Deceit. We’ve been hired to write the sequel to Wanted by the same studio,” Derek Haas revealed to Pajiba. “And we’ve got a few more things in the hopper that it’s a little premature to talk about.”
I always assumed that Wanted was going to be in and out of movie theaters when it is released in June. The online response to the project has been minimal. But it seems like Universal believes they might have a franchise on their hands. Brandt and Haas, who also worked on the screenplay for the original film, are also credited with 3:10 to Yuma, Catch that Kid, and the upcoming big screen adaptations of Spy Hunter and The A-Team.
banner credit: badtaste.it
JJ Abrams to Produce Adaptation of Apartment Featured in New York Times
Paramount has purchased the rights to an article which ran in the New York Times on June 12th called Mystery on Fifth Avenue. JJ Abrams will produce a feature film based on the article which describes a 14th-floor apartment on upper Fifth Avenue which contains a Rube Goldberg maze of systems and contraptions conceived by a young architectural designer named Eric Clough. Apparently the apartment comes with its own soundtrack and a book, featuring a fictional narrative which will help their four pre-teen children uncover some the secrets, messages, games and treasures hidden inside the furniture and walls.
Screenwriters Maya Forbes and Wally Wolodarsky (The Rocker) have been hired to weave the idea into a feature film. I can definitely see a movie in the same vein as Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events or Spiderwick Chronicles (but without the fantasy elements), where a group of children must uncover the secrets of their New York City apartment, possibly in an attempt to save their parents or grandparents. You can read the entire article on NYTimes.com, or better yet, check out 15 photos from the real life Fifth Avenue apartment at this link.
source: THR
Edward Norton Not Given Writing Credit For The Incredible Hulk?
According to IESB, Zak Penn has been given the sole writing credit for The Incredible Hulk, despite the fact that Edward Norton re-wrote his draft. It is well known that one of the only reasons Norton agreed to do Hulk were if he had creative input, in this case re-writing the script.
The IESB contacted Zak Penn’s office to ask about the credit. They confirmed Penn will be receiving sole writing credit on the film.
Universal reps are saying, “WGA determined the writing credit not Zak or Edward or Universal or Marvel. WGA always determines final writing credit for our films right before the film comes out. Up until that time, we include the writers on the project to date.”
A call to the WGA got this response, “Zak Penn is receiving sole credit for story and screenplay.”
Apparently, there was arbitration, which is quite common since two screenwriters were listed. The WGA sided with Zak Penn.
In my opinion it wouldn’t be hard just to give them both credit. I’m not a WGA script expert but it would seem the logical and fair thing to do. It’s not as though the script had input from many writers such as Catwoman (14 writers in total). In cases where there are lots of writers then I suppose this process of choosing is better, but when only two writers have worked on the script it would see, fair to credit both.
If everyone from the catering ladies to the lighting guys get credited than surely one of the writers should get credit somewhere.
M. Night Shyamalan Blames Unbreakable Marketing
M. Night Shyamalan tells the New York Times that he remembers the exact moment when his relationship with Hollywood began to go bad: A conference call with Disney executives discussing how to market Unbreakable. Night wanted to sell the film as a comic-book movie (”the tale of an unlikely superhero”) but Disney executives insisted on portraying it as a “spooky thriller”, like The Sixth Sense.
“I remember the moment that it happened, exactly where I was sitting at the table, the speakerphone,” Night recalled. “That moment may have been the biggest mistake that I have to undo over 10 years so the little old lady doesn’t go, ‘Oh, he’s the guy who makes the scary movies with a twist.’ ”
If Night is still making movies ten years from now, I’m sure audiences will still have the same expectations. And it’s a shame because Unbreakable was probably his best film in my opinion. It’s one of the most underrated superhero movies ever made. And it’s very likely the movie will never get its due thanks to the way the film was marketed. Shyamalan also attempts to defend the idea of a director’s name on the marquee:
“The problem is the assumption that if I am selling the movie — because I’m selling me — that I’m being egotistical. If Will Smith did the same thing, it would be perceived very differently,” he said. “You’re supposed to be hidden if you’re a director. That’s a rule that who said in the movie business?”
And again he has a point. People (and American more specifically) put too much value in the archaic Hollywood star system. I’m not sure screenwriters will ever get their due (unless of course they are writer/directors), but it seems to me that the director (and again, to a greater extreme, the writer/director) is more an author than the actor ever will be. And that’s not to say that the stars don’t contribute. I just don’t understand why more people don’t choose movies based on the filmmakers. And I sure don’t understand why a director who wants to put his name in the billing must be considered egotistical. It’s just a shame that Shyamalan, who has come off pretty egotistical in every interview I’ve ever seen him do, is the only one willing to say it.
Read the rest of Allison Weiner’s fascinating article about Shyamalan on NYTimes.com.