Holy Moses! Chernin Makes First Big Pic Buy
For his first significant film project acquisition, Peter Chernin is taking on a project of Biblical proportions.
20th Century Fox has made a preemptive acquisition of a pitch to tell the story of Moses in "300" style. The tale will start with his near death as an infant to his adoption into the Egyptian royal family, his defiance of the Pharoah and deliverance of the Hebrews from enslavement.
Chernin will produce with Dylan Clark, who recently moved over from Universal to become president of Chernin’s Fox-based film company.
The script will be written by Adam Cooper and Bill Collage, who make this their followup to a high-level deal they made to reinvent Herman Melville”s “Moby Dick,” with a graphic novel feel, for director Timur Bekmambetov and producer Scott Stuber at Universal. That script is in, the extensive pre-visualization work is done. It could be Bekmambetov's next film, if "Wanted 2" doesn't come together first.
The Moses story will be told using the same green screen strategy as "300," so it will feel more like that pic or "Braveheart" than "The Ten Commandments,” the 1956 Cecil B. DeMille film.
The popular mythical and magical elements inherent in the Book of Exodus will be there--including the plagues visited upon Egypt and the parting of the Red Sea--but the Cooper & Collage version will also include new elements of Moses’ life that the writers culled from Rabbinical Midrash and other historical sources.
Chernin adds the project to several pre-existing Fox projects he has joined as producer, including the John D. MacDonald novel series adaptation “The Deep Blue Goodbye,” the Appian Way-produced drama that's a potential star vehicle for Leonardo DiCaprio
20th Century Fox has made a preemptive acquisition of a pitch to tell the story of Moses in "300" style. The tale will start with his near death as an infant to his adoption into the Egyptian royal family, his defiance of the Pharoah and deliverance of the Hebrews from enslavement.
Chernin will produce with Dylan Clark, who recently moved over from Universal to become president of Chernin’s Fox-based film company.
The script will be written by Adam Cooper and Bill Collage, who make this their followup to a high-level deal they made to reinvent Herman Melville”s “Moby Dick,” with a graphic novel feel, for director Timur Bekmambetov and producer Scott Stuber at Universal. That script is in, the extensive pre-visualization work is done. It could be Bekmambetov's next film, if "Wanted 2" doesn't come together first.
The Moses story will be told using the same green screen strategy as "300," so it will feel more like that pic or "Braveheart" than "The Ten Commandments,” the 1956 Cecil B. DeMille film.
The popular mythical and magical elements inherent in the Book of Exodus will be there--including the plagues visited upon Egypt and the parting of the Red Sea--but the Cooper & Collage version will also include new elements of Moses’ life that the writers culled from Rabbinical Midrash and other historical sources.
Chernin adds the project to several pre-existing Fox projects he has joined as producer, including the John D. MacDonald novel series adaptation “The Deep Blue Goodbye,” the Appian Way-produced drama that's a potential star vehicle for Leonardo DiCaprio
Cooper & Collage, who wrote the comedy "Accepted" before creating this new track into tent-pole re-tellings of classics, also scripted the latest draft of “Tower Heist,” which Brett Ratner will direct for Universal and Imagine.
The scribes are repped by WME and attorney Jeff Frankel.
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"The popular mythical and magical elements inherent in the Book of Exodus will be there."
Yes, we Christians and Jews just like those parts because they're "popular," not because they happened. Yeesh. And I see there's not mention of God. It's all Moses. Moses would not have been pleased.
Posted by: nolotrippen | 10/12/2009 at 07:26 AM
Ugh, there are so many "in the style of 300" movies coming out I could puke.
Hey Hollywood, it worked for 300 bc nobody had really seen anything quite like that before, but now that the genie's out of the bottle it will get less and less effe ctive the more it's done.
Not to mention that you are remaking - oh I'm sorry "re-imagining" (I hate that phrase, if it walks and quacks...)- one of the greatest films OF ALL TIME; using a flavor-of-the-month cinematographic genre will just amplify its shortcomings of which I am sure there will be MANY.
Congrats Hollywood, you have no soul...
Posted by: Dave from Jersey | 10/12/2009 at 08:59 AM
"mythical and magical elements"
I guess that says all you need to know about how the subject material will be treated.
I can see it now, 'Moses' guesting starring Robin Williams as the Genie from the Aladdin movies.
Posted by: David Ferguson | 10/12/2009 at 10:16 AM
more importantly, though, when it becomes apparent that the producers think that Christians are a bunch of children for believing in fairy tales, the movie will tank
Posted by: David Ferguson | 10/12/2009 at 10:17 AM
Does 300 style means it will be historically inaccurate, the red sea will be parted in slow motion and it will be filmed entirely indoors?
Posted by: Blake | 10/12/2009 at 11:32 AM
Yeah they seem to not be taking this too seriously.
Posted by: jj22 | 10/12/2009 at 12:45 PM
We shall see if they treat it with respect.
Posted by: jj22 | 10/12/2009 at 12:45 PM
As if we haven't already had an ASS-FULL of this kind of b.s. already!! Everyone and his sister is SICK AND TIRED of these genre of movies. Just WRITE SOMETHING NEW, and maybe you won't all be in serious trouble with our changing society. The studios just continue to copycat, rehash, remake, and BORE your audience to DEATH!!! Soon enough, you studios are gonna find out just how insignificant you are becoming. Ratings will continue to PLUMMET, box office revenue will continue to SLIDE, ad sales will continue to FALL, DVD sales are going to END altogether, and ALL you'll be left with is NOTHING! Everyone I know is tired of the same old thing again and again, and you actually BELIEVE that just because something worked the first time, it'll work again. Our executive class in Hollywood needs to be put out to pasture! You know, considering all the so-called power players in Hollywood who went to top universities (e.g. Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Wharton, etc...) the fact that you folks have RUINED this business altogether to the point that ALL the studios are in trouble, all the networks are hurting, indies are suffering, and audiences are boring themselves to death, what does that say for YOU and YOUR INSTITUTIONS?? What does it say for the top universities of our country, when all they produce is a bunch of cronies who couldn't make a proper decision with a gun to their head? Just like Wall Street, your whole lot. ALL that education from such "fine" institutions, and look at the ultimate result. One bad decision after another, and when it's all screwed up, you'll just fire the top guys, promote the next IDIOTS who came from the same brood, and keep up with the same garbage. Garbage in, garbage out, nothing changes, business as usual!
Posted by: "E" | 10/12/2009 at 12:48 PM
"Does 300 style means it will be historically inaccurate, the red sea will be parted in slow motion and it will be filmed entirely indoors?"
Yes.
Posted by: D-Mahn | 10/12/2009 at 12:50 PM
Question for all the commenters.
THE WIRE was widely renowned as being an amazing television show. It was, without argument, great.
Yet, it hardly survived five seasons. ENTOURAGE is still going strong after seven seasons--it never has a problem being picked up, although nowhere near the level of quality of THE WIRE.
Hollywood makes what it thinks people will pay to see. Is it Hollywood execs' fault that nobody pays to see their best films and television shows, like THE WIRE and prefer to see their much more cheesy product (ENTOURAGE)?
Wake up. Intelligent programming has a small audience. Stupid programming has a wide audience. It's the viewer not the programmer.
Posted by: the game | 10/12/2009 at 01:51 PM
i hated 300. i bet if the whole movie played at regular speed, it woulda only been 20 minutes long. i really hope this gets put in development hell, and never sees the light of the day.
Posted by: who craig? | 10/12/2009 at 02:01 PM
This movie will be huge no matter how bad or good it is. You watch all the nut-bag Christians pour out of the wood-work. They will either protest it or watch it. Either way the movie will make millions. By the way kids, were talking fiction here.
Posted by: whatthedoosh | 10/12/2009 at 04:44 PM
This film has the potential to be a real hit. I think everyone is jumping to conclusions, the Ten Commandments is a great story with strong characters. It will be a breath of fresh air.
Posted by: moses | 10/12/2009 at 04:59 PM
I loved 300 and won't mind another movie made like that, what with the graphics and blood.
Why not?
It looks great on Blu-ray, IMO that's the only reason Blu-ray exists; to make (Transformers, T4, 300...etc) that much more awesome.
Posted by: Alex | 10/12/2009 at 07:22 PM
Great pre-publicity for the forthcoming Cecil B. DeMille biopic. Good buzz a-brewing.
Posted by: C.B. DeMille | 10/12/2009 at 07:25 PM
Ok, folks. Let's think about this a bit.
1. What we're forgetting here is, like The Game said, the fact is that Hollywood makes what people HAVE BEEN KNOWN to pay money for. Whether it's TV, film, music, what-have-you, we have ONLY OURSELVES TO BLAME.
2. Other film makers ARE, ALWAYS HAVE BEEN, and WILL KEEP ON making great films, TV shows, etc. But they get canned, tank at the box office, etc. due to ridiculous lack of support from us. (I'll leave off the examples, because people would end up paying more attention to that than the point.)
3. Telemarketers call at dinnertime because for every one of us that gets fuming mad about it, there are ten who say, "Okie dokie, I would LOVE to hear about what you're selling!" They do it, because it works.
4. MOST IMPORTANTLY: CHRISTIANS/JEWS, PAY ATTENTION. What the heck do we expect?? Do we expect Hollywood, creators of such brilliant works of art and reverence as Showgirls, Rob Zombie's Halloween "series", and Grandma's Boy, to make something God would be proud of? The few quality Christian films that have made it to fruition have had to GO AROUND HOLLYWOOD. It's Hollywood, people. That's like saying, "I'm shocked that there's so much sin in the world!" Well...duh. It's the world..
Posted by: AC | 10/13/2009 at 08:07 AM
Very original, Hollywood. Running out of ideas, are we?
Posted by: Daniel | 10/14/2009 at 12:11 AM
I've read all the blogs on this Moses movie and think about the word "covenant."
Whether you are a believer or a seeker or just plain confused, read the book of Exodus chapters 19-40 that describes how God entered into a special covenant relationship with the people. All He was trying to do was get them to experience His guiding presence while they traveled to the promised land.
Now Hollywood, consider the word covenant. Is it not the industry's intent to develop a covenant with your audience? Do this story proper justice and you just may have America coming back to the movie theaters to experience a "story well told." You have a whole new generation of watchers to build a covenant. Be careful and do it right. The audience has A.D.D. and is not very forgiving. (unlike how God may want us to act)
Rick Tocquigny
Artbeat of America
Brand Management Team
303-324-6298
Posted by: Rick Tocquigny | 10/14/2009 at 08:46 AM