Director Says ‘Chef’ Project Is Dead
David Fincher certainly hasn’t had time to bask in the critical glow of his Oscar contender “The Social Network.” “I mean we finished the movie probably 3, 4 weeks before the New York Film Festival, and I got on a plane and went to Stockholm, and then I got on a plane [and] came back for the opening, and then went to work. So I kind of haven’t really had a chance to assess, cause I’ve really been (laughs) on to other things,” he told Collider in an extensive interview. Currently elbows deep in “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo,” which according to Stellan Skarsgård will be shooting through May, the ever-busy director still has his eye on future projects, including the previously announced “20,000 Leagues Under the Sea.” And for Fincher, who continually pushes the technical envelope with each film, he’s set to make his first foray in the industry’s hottest trend.
“Yeah. 20,000 Leagues will be 3D,” Fincher coolly revealed, indicating that he thinks the format is “cool…when it’s done right.” And as much as we grouse about 3D, poor conversion and having to sit in the dark wearing those clunky glasses, the prospect of someone as forward thinking as Fincher putting his skill set to 3D is definitely exciting.
The project is set up at Disney and promises to be a change of pace for the director, and his first bona fide tentpole picture. The film has a screenplay written by very hot scribe Scott Z. Burns (“The Bourne Ultimatum,” “The Informant,” “Contagion“) but the picture is far from solidified as Fincher’s next outing with the director saying, “I think that there’s a lot of movies that could be my next film.”
Fincher confirms that long-gestating projects like “Rendezvous with Rama,” “Heavy Metal,” “The Killer” and “The Reincarnation of Peter Proud” (of which he says “I’d love to make that movie. It’s fucking great. Great script.”) are all still very much on his slate, and being written/rewritten for his sensibilities. However, Fincher notes one project is dead, the culinary sex comedy, “Chef,” that was once going to star Keanu Reeves. This means two recent Fincher projects have been killed as he recently confirmed in a ‘Social Network‘ Q&A that “Ness” (once attached with Matt Damon, Casey Affleck and Rachel McAdams) had also been killed.
And of course, should ‘Dragon Tattoo’ be the hit that everyone expects it should be, there is also the possibility of the sequel, “The Girl Who Played with Fire.” But as Fincher notes, even that isn’t necessarily a sure thing at this point, plus it doesn’t sound like Steve Zaillian has begun penning it yet.
“I believe that there’s a script that has to be written for the second movie. We have to have an audience that wants to see a second movie. We have to make room for another Bond movie. So there’s a lot of elements that come into play,” he says. As you might remember Steve Zaillian was approached by Sony to pen the screenplay even before shooting began on ‘Dragon Tattoo.’ And of course, with MGM now on the other side of bankruptcy and beginning to get back up and running, “Bond 23” is a huge priority, and when ‘Played with Fire’ can shoot will depend on lead Daniel Craig‘s availability and where 007 fits into his schedule.
Anyway, there is a lot to be excited about on the horizon from David Fincher and he’s definitely one of the most interesting directors out there. The interview is worth a read with Fincher touching upon a number of topics including the 2003 “pre-iPhone” setting for ‘Dragon Tattoo,’ a fascinating explanation on his multiple take approach and why Sony bleeped out portions of his commentary track for the upcoming “The Social Network” DVD/BluRay release.
