Director Mark Romanek has vacated the director’s chair on the remake of The Wolf Man. Seems the budget – slated for $85 million after $15 million in tax breaks. He has told of “creative differences” are the reason for his departure.
Benicio Del Toro (Sin City) is still on board in the role of Lawrence Talbot and Anthony Hopkins (The Silence of the Lambs) recently closed his deal to play Talbot’s father. Emily Blunt (Wind Chill) rounds out the cast in the female lead.
Production was scheduled for March but this could now be affected if Universal can’t find a director. Yet Universal is already reportedly looking at two different candidates to direct the movie. Both Breck Eisner (Sahara) and Matt Reeves (Cloverfield) have been tapped up, according to Ain’t It Cool News.
AICN also reports, however, that Matt Reeves already has two potential projects on his plate. With the monster success of Cloverfield, the director’s popularity should be no surprise. In addition to a Cloverfield sequel, Reeves is also working on the J.J. Abrams produced Invisible Woman.
The Wolf Man’s, scripted by Andrew Kevin Walker (Seven), new incarnation of the hirsute hero will center on Lawrence Talbot (Del Toro) returning to his ancestral homeland. Whilst mending fences with family, Talbot is bitten and subsequently cursed by a werewolf. The fur flies soon after.
If all things go right you expect to see The Wolf Man at some point in 2009.
Universal is desperately trying to salvage the February 18, 2008 start date. With two names already floating around on the same day as the announcement that Mark Romanek has abandoned the project, it appears that the studio fully intends on sticking to their original schedule.
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