Shankman Takes "Rock of Ages"
“Hairspray” helmer Adam Shankman is signing on to direct and choreograph “Rock of Ages,” the screen version of the Broadway musical for New Line Cinema.
The film will begin production by next summer, and will be released by Warner Bros. in 2011.
The musical’s creator, Chris D’Arienzo, scripted the movie adaptation. Carl Levin, Matt Weaver, Scott Prisand, Tobey Maguire and Jennifer Gibgot will produce, and Janet Billig and Hillary Weaver are executive producers.
Shankman will move from the 60s music of “Hairspray” into the signature 80s rock anthems that drive “Rock of Ages.” While it seems a stretch, Shankman reminds me that among the many videos he choreographed back in the day was the 1991 tune “Get the Funk Out” by Extreme, one of those 80s big-hair bands.And his father was a music manager whose clients included Barry White, so Shankman feels he knows the world.
“I had the best time of my life making `Hairspray’ and badly wanted another musical, and when I watched `Rock of Ages,’ I was struck by the fact that not only had much of the audience seen it more than once, every guy in the audience knew the words to the songs,” Shankman said. “I thought, `this is `Mamma Mia!’ for dudes. What an extraordinary opportunity to open the genre to an audience that otherwise wouldn’t go see a musical.”
The musical tells the story of a couple that meets at the Sunset Strip club Rock of Ages, falls in love and tries to stay together amid the rough and tumble rock lifestyle. The cast finds reasons to belt out 80s rock anthems made popular by Journey, Twisted Sister, Joan Jett, Bon Jovi, Pat Benatar and other MTV generation staples.
Landing a big director is the latest in a series of unlikely developments for a show that began modestly five years ago in a Hollywood rock club, where the sets had to be struck quickly to make way for rave parties. After a short-lived Vegas stint that almost killed it, “Rock of Ages” caught on off-Broadway, and three movie studios battled for the movie rights.
Since its move to Broadway, “Rock of Ages” fills most of its 1000 seats at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre, and even got five Tony nominations. The show will eventually roll out around the world.
Whether it's the current sleeper "Paranormal Activity," the $11,000 film that is making a fortune for Paramount, or "Mamma Mia!," which became a global blockbuster for Universal even if Pierce Brosnan didn't hit every Abba note, every now and then a movie comes along that runs counter to conventional wisdom. That could be said of New Line's "Sex and the City," which struggled to get a green light. Can Toby Emmerich score a hit by putting an established mainstream musical director like Shankman in charge of turning a lowbrow tuner into a star-driven picture?
Well, one of Rock of Ages' signature tunes is Journey's "Don't Stop Believin.'"
Shankman's repped by UTA.
The film will begin production by next summer, and will be released by Warner Bros. in 2011.
The musical’s creator, Chris D’Arienzo, scripted the movie adaptation. Carl Levin, Matt Weaver, Scott Prisand, Tobey Maguire and Jennifer Gibgot will produce, and Janet Billig and Hillary Weaver are executive producers.
Shankman will move from the 60s music of “Hairspray” into the signature 80s rock anthems that drive “Rock of Ages.” While it seems a stretch, Shankman reminds me that among the many videos he choreographed back in the day was the 1991 tune “Get the Funk Out” by Extreme, one of those 80s big-hair bands.And his father was a music manager whose clients included Barry White, so Shankman feels he knows the world.
“I had the best time of my life making `Hairspray’ and badly wanted another musical, and when I watched `Rock of Ages,’ I was struck by the fact that not only had much of the audience seen it more than once, every guy in the audience knew the words to the songs,” Shankman said. “I thought, `this is `Mamma Mia!’ for dudes. What an extraordinary opportunity to open the genre to an audience that otherwise wouldn’t go see a musical.”
The musical tells the story of a couple that meets at the Sunset Strip club Rock of Ages, falls in love and tries to stay together amid the rough and tumble rock lifestyle. The cast finds reasons to belt out 80s rock anthems made popular by Journey, Twisted Sister, Joan Jett, Bon Jovi, Pat Benatar and other MTV generation staples.
Landing a big director is the latest in a series of unlikely developments for a show that began modestly five years ago in a Hollywood rock club, where the sets had to be struck quickly to make way for rave parties. After a short-lived Vegas stint that almost killed it, “Rock of Ages” caught on off-Broadway, and three movie studios battled for the movie rights.
Since its move to Broadway, “Rock of Ages” fills most of its 1000 seats at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre, and even got five Tony nominations. The show will eventually roll out around the world.
Whether it's the current sleeper "Paranormal Activity," the $11,000 film that is making a fortune for Paramount, or "Mamma Mia!," which became a global blockbuster for Universal even if Pierce Brosnan didn't hit every Abba note, every now and then a movie comes along that runs counter to conventional wisdom. That could be said of New Line's "Sex and the City," which struggled to get a green light. Can Toby Emmerich score a hit by putting an established mainstream musical director like Shankman in charge of turning a lowbrow tuner into a star-driven picture?
Well, one of Rock of Ages' signature tunes is Journey's "Don't Stop Believin.'"
Shankman's repped by UTA.
Subscribe to this blog's feed
Adrien Brody as Steve Perry type lead?...channeling Steve Perry....
Posted by: CarolMWhtehse | 10/26/2009 at 09:43 AM