Gore Verbinski's Animated Movie
Pirates of the Caribbean Director Teams With Departed Producer
After the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise hit the jackpot, everyone in Hollywood was looking to see what director Gore Verbinski would do as his next project.
Rumours have been swirling around the director for months. One story claimed Verbinski was going to work with Bloom County/Opus creator Berke Breathed on an animated adaptation of his 2003 children's picture book Flawed Dogs: The Year End Leftovers at the Piddleton "Last Chance" Dog Pound. There has been no follow-up to that story, but it's certain that Verbinski has absolutely no interest in the further adventures of Captain Jack Sparrow, Will Turner and Elisabeth Swann.
As Breathed once said, "Gore's sick of pirates. If I wrote a scene that had to be shot on water, he'd run the other way."
What's also certain is that, after directing the CGI-heavy Pirates of the Caribbean trilogy, Gore Verbinski wants to delve further into animated film.
Verbinski Working With Graham King, John Logan
The latest story, according to Variety, claims that Verbinski has hooked up with British-born producer Graham King (The Departed) and writer John Logan (Gladiator, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street) to make an as-yet untitled animated film.
Verbinski had met King through Pirates of the Caribbean star Johnny Depp, who has a production deal with King, but Logan was the one who suggested they team up. Logan had previously worked with King on The Aviator.
King wanted to move in a more family-oriented direction, after the more adult-oriented slant of his previous movies.
"It's the first movie I've ever done that I can take my kids to," said King, who also produced Blood Diamond, Traffic and Ali. "I've been looking to do movies that play to audiences of all ages."
King, Verbinski and Logan are developing the project under King's GK Films imprint, and working independently of the often-constricting studio system. Production will likely be through Verbinski's FX facility. Verbinski has already recruited Mark McCreery, who designed all the creatures in the first PotC flick, and James Ward Brykit, the art director for all three Pirates of the Caribbean movies, to work on the project.
There is also an outside chance that Johnny Depp, who has worked with all three men , will join the flick in some capacity. Depp is also close friends with both Verbinski and King
The plot is currently under wraps since the recent writers' strike had derailed the development process. The budget for the as-yet untitled film has yet to be set, but it's expected to be around $100 million.
This unknown animated film is scheduled for a 2010 release.
