World War Z Moving Forward?
Posted 04.13.11 by Ryan
Last month, it seemed that Paramount's adaptation of World War Z was mired in financial issues as the studio searched for a partner to co-finance the zombie movie's $125 million budget.
A week later, it was reported that producer David Ellison could help pick up the movie's huge tab through his Skydance Productions, which has helped produce movies like last year's True Grit and the upcoming Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol. The movie's budget, big even by Hollywood's standards, is easily the biggest ever for a zombie movie.
With World War Z potentially out of financial danger, a June start for was rumored, but seemed overly optimistic considering the movie's slow start; it might not be.
BleedingCool reports that the Marc Forster-directed production has hired a director of photography in Robert Richardson (Shutter Island, Inglourious Basterds). The blog site made the discovery by way of Richardson's resume, which included the adaptation of Max Brooks' best-selling novel. According to the report, Richardson is already prepping to shoot World War Z at London’s Elstree studio, and production could begin as early as the end of this month or possibly next month.
If World War Z is going to start shooting in London soon, it would need its lead actor Brad Pitt, whose Plan B production company is also producing the movie. It seems that Pitt will be on hand. According to British gossip site The Mirror, Pitt is moving to the dear 'ol Blighty, specifically relocating to London, though the site's sources doesn't have him crossing the pond to shoot World War Z until July.
World War Z was adapted by Matthew Michael Carnahan (The Kingdom), with an initial draft by J. Michael Straczynski (Changeling).