The surprising news that Twilight's sequel, New Moon, will not be directed by Catherine Hardwicke hit fans like a ton of bricks this week. Twilight's $69-million opening weekend was the biggest ever for a female director, and the flick has already passed $160 million in worldwide box office. Top stars Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson reportedly have reacted negatively to the news of Hardwicke's departure. And now the legion of card-carrying Twilight fans are wondering if Summit has the best interests of the franchise at heart -- or is just hoping to cash in on the fad as quickly as possible.
We can complain all day about Hardwicke's departure, but like it or not, what's done is done. She's moving on and the Twilight fans must do the same. Their best hope is that a competent, credible director is chosen to continue where Hardwicke left off. (For their sake, here's hoping Brett Ratner, McG, and Paul W.S. Anderson are unavailable.)
We decided to look around for directors we think could make worthy replacements. Here are 10 we believe could pull off the more-challenging, more-expensive New Moon.
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Resume: American Pie, About a Boy, The Golden Compass
What he would bring to New Moon: Weitz is here because rumors are circulating that he's already been offered the job. In terms of heartfelt human comedies, I like the guy. But Golden Compass was a turkey and that's his sole experience with a project of similar scope.
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Resume: Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Children of Men, Y tu mama tambien
What he would bring to New Moon: Cuaron raised the bar on the Harry Potter series after Chris Columbus' forgettable first two entries. Like Hardwicke, he departed after one film. There is little doubt that he would make a good flick, but his tendency towards darker themes might feel out of balance with the first film.
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Resume: The Virgin Suicides, Lost in Translation, Marie Antionette
What she would bring to New Moon: A radically different perspective and a grittier, indie feel. She's worked with young actors in all of her releases and might make the sequel a little more rock 'n' roll. Doesn't exactly seem like Coppola's cup of tea, though.
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Resume: Matrix Trilogy, Bound, Speed Racer
What they would bring to New Moon: Hard to tell. They've made an alternative sort of twisted love story with Bound, blown audiences out the water with the Matrix (the first one, anyway), and flopped miserably with the neon nightmare of Speed Racer. But they are unpredictable and always capable of surprises, so it would surely be something different.
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Resume: Reservoir Dogs, Pulp Fiction, Kill Bill
What he would bring to New Moon: One bad-a**, less-feminine Edward. The girls would talk cooler and Quentin might require that there is a discussion of comic books or famous '70s kung-fu flicks at some point. Probably not the most likely director, but don't count him out too quickly. After all, Tarantino did express interest in directing the Friday the 13th Remake.
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Resume: Hellboy, Blade II, Pan's Labyrinth
What he would bring to New Moon: Del Toro has already done vampires of a different sort with the second Blade film. He's a wizard with special effects and making moderate budgets look gigantic. The problem is, Summit probably couldn't afford him and del Toro is likely too busy prepping for The Hobbit prequels.
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Resume: Serenity, Buffy the Vampire Slayer (TV)
What he would bring to New Moon: Whedon is no stranger to vampires or episodic storytelling. He's from TV, so he works fast and has demonstrated an ability to do more with less on Buffy and Firefly. However, getting involved with another vampire series may simply not be in the director's best interest for fear of typecasting.
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Resume: Donnie Darko, Southland Tales
What he would bring to New Moon: Kelly has directed one exceptional movie and one mind-boggling disaster. Darko is still good enough that he deserves another chance. And you'd better believe he'd give New Moon the visual flair this more-complex second book demands.
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Resume: Dawn of the Dead, 300, Watchmen
What he would bring to New Moon: Edward and the gang might end up ditching the femme look in favor of some added brawn and, possibly, a chest wax. Snyder did an undead movie once before, so that experience couldn't hurt. Dawn and 300 are cool, but the jury is still out on whether this director has the chops to pull off the upcoming Watchmen.
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Resume: Blade: Trinity, The Invisible, The Unborn
What he would bring to New Moon: Goyer created the vampire world of the Blade movies, adapting it from the cult comic series. And yes, he wrote the friggin' Dark Knight, so Melissa Rosenberg would probably have to expect a rewrite or two. As a director, however, Goyer's skills are far-less polished in comparison to his scribbler talents.
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