Universal Deciding Between Two Directors for Ouija
Posted 12.20.10 by Ryan
Universal has had directors lined up to take the helm of the adaptation Ouija, based on Hasbro's board game that supposedly allows players to talk to ghosts and spirits. According to THR, directors Pierre Morel (Taken), Sylvain White (The Losers), Scott Stewart (Legion), and John Moore (Max Payne) have all failed to land the gig, which leaves Universal to decide between two other directors who are vying for the job — McG and Breck Eisner (The Crazies). Eisner reportedly pitched his take to the studio last week before McG's Friday presentation and Universal is taking the holidays to think through their decision.
Ouija is being produced by Michael Bay's Platinum Dunes production company from a script by Tron Legacy screenwriters Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz. Not much is known about how the writers plan to translate the board game into a movie, though it has been rumored that the movie won't be scary after Horowitz told AssignmentX that Ouija would be like "a big adventure movie" in the tone of Indiana Jones rather than The Ring. Horowitz clarified his comments to io9, revealing that the movie will indeed have scares.
I know there was a quote picked up recently that said Ouija won't be scary, and that's not what we meant. The question that was asked was, "Will it be Jumanji?" It's not Jumanji, it's not a board that comes to life. It [has] the scope of a large adventure movie, but it will definitely have scares in it.
"When you're talking about a board that communicates with the dead, there is a chilling aspect to it, and one that we hope to embrace within the story," Kitsis added.
Considering the "an adventure movie with scares" description, we're thinking Eisner has the edge, but we'll wait for Universal's announcement to be sure.
Next Showing: Ouija is currently scheduled to open on November 9, 2012