Monday, August 24
Bryan Singer may be setting himself up to direct both a Battlestar Galatica and an Excalibur remake, but Variety reports that Singer is also "flirting with directing" X-Men: First Class, the spin-off written by The O.C. creator Josh Schwartz that would follow the adventures of a teenage incarnation of the X-Men team.
Singer has admitted that he regrets leaving X-Men: The Last Stand and has even mentioned interest in directing X-Men Origins:Magneto, though he cited Magneto's Nazi back story as a possible deal breaker, considering the amount of Nazi-related movies on Singer's resume already. That may be the reason Singer is turning his attention to First Class.
X-Men producer Lauren Shuler Donner has said, "Nothing would please me more than to bring Bryan on for another [X-Men] movie," and considering the amount of movies being lined up, like Deadpool and possibly a Gambit movie, there should be another X-Men project for Singer should he pass on X-Men: First Class."
And despite all those other projects in the works, Singer's next feature may end up being Jack the Giant Killer, a riff on Jack and the Beanstalk about a boy who travels to the land of giants to rescue a princess.
Posted 8/24/2009 by Ryan
Related: Bryan Singer | Lauren Shuler Donner | X-Men: The Last Stand | Battlestar Galactica | Excalibur | X-Men Origins: Magneto | Deadpool | X-Men: First Class | Josh Schwartz
Saturday, August 22
Writer-director-producer Bryan Singer has had many ups and downs in his career. After he received critical acclaim for directing The Usual Suspects, a taut crime thriller with a surprise ending, Singer became a fan favorite with X-Men and X2.
Lately, however, his films have not been very well received. Singer has been blamed for the demise of the Superman franchise thanks to his meddling with the character's mythology in Superman Returns and the poor box-office results it generated. His last film, Valkyrie, was poorly received, opening in fourth place and inciting protests in Germany for casting Tom Cruise in the title role.
Singer is looking to get back on track, but he seems mired in controversy. The recent announcement that he was going to produce and direct a big-screen version of Battlestar Gallactica, a property that he planned to relaunch before the Syfy Channel series, was met by the fan community with equal parts enthusiasm, confusion, and anger.
Now, Singer's looking to resurrect another old concept with Excalibur, the 1981 film directed by John Boorman that helped launch the careers of Liam Neeson, Gabriel Byne, and Patrick Stewart. Though Singer has closed a rights deal for Excalibur through Warner Bros., Boorman still shares an interest in the property, so it's unclear just how the production will come together.
Posted 8/22/2009 by BrentJS
Related: Bryan Singer | Excalibur