Filmonic » Bioshock

Juan Carlos Fresnadillo in talks to direct Bioshock

Liam — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 10:51:33 +0000

Back in June Gore Verbinski said that he was unsure if he could still direct Bioshock as he could not commit to the lengthy overseas filming. Universal wanted to take advantage of overseas tax breaks in an effort to trim down the budget, which apparently spiralled to $160 million. Well now according to Variety Verbinski has stepped down as director, however he will still produce, and a new director is in talks to direct the game adaptation.

“28 Weeks Later” helmer Juan Carlos Fresnadillo is in talks to direct “Bioshock,” the Universal Pictures adaptation of the Take-Two Interactive videogame.
Fresnadillo directed the 2001 Spanish thriller “Intacto,” and made his Hollywood breakthrough with “28 Weeks Later.”
With “Bioshock,” Fresnadillo is stepping into one of the highest-profile projects on the Universal roster. Verbinski came attached as director when Universal made a multimillion- dollar against gross percentage acquisition from Take-Two. Verbinski then stepped away from directing his fourth “Pirates of the Caribbean” film because he expected to be in production on “Bioshock” last spring in Los Angeles.
Once it was clear Verbinski wouldn’t direct, he and the studio sparked to Fresnadillo, whose deal is contingent upon the thumbs-up from Take-Two, which maintains director approval. Fresnadillo’s producing partner, Enrique Lopez Lavigne, is in talks to become a producer.

Both 28 Weeks Later and Intacto have just over 70% on Rotten Tomatoes which suggests Juan Carlos Fresnadillo is a capable director, and Universal will need one. Bioshock takes place in an alternate 1960, and in the game the player takes the role of a plane crash survivor named Jack, who must explore the underwater city of Rapture, and survive attacks by the mutated beings and mechanical drones that populate it.

Can Gore Verbinski still direct Bioshock?

Liam — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 23:13:46 +0000

The last thing we heard on the movie adaptation of Bioshock was that production had been halted due to the escalating budget and Universal were trying to work out how to reduce costs, which could involve filming outside of the US where countries such as Australia give tax breaks for films shot there. Pirates of the Caribbean director Gore Verbinski is attached as director, however he may not be for much longer as he revealed to the L.A. Times that it may not be possible for him to leave the US for such a long length of time.

The bottom line is it has to shoot out of the States for budget reasons and my schedule may be prohibitive. There’s a great script and a really interesting cast. It really comes down to the financial model now. Big movies are just not being shot in the States. I’m weighing whether I can physically go the U.K. or Australia or one of those other places with a tax rebate for a year-and-a-half.

Gore filmed most of the Pirates trilogy in exotic locations so it’s probably not down to a fear of flying. He obviously has commitments elsewhere, whether they be family or business. Personally I would like to see Gore direct Bioshock as I think he could actually make it a good, entertaining and cool film, unlike what we have seen with most other game-to-movie adaptations.

I find it interesting that he says they have a “really interesting cast”. Universal probably won’t reveal anything until they know what they are doing, however there has been talk that Wentworth Miller (Prison Break) could have landed a role in the film. Hopefully Gore and Universal can work something out because i’d hate to see Bioshock stay in development limbo for years.

Budget puts Bioshock on hold

Liam — Sat, 25 Apr 2009 02:19:05 +0000

Director Gore Verbinski recently announced that he would be working on the movie adaptation of Bioshock instead of directing Pirates of the Caribbean 4, however Universal have now put the film on hold while they find a way to reduce the budget.

From Variety:

Universal Pictures has put the brakes on “Bioshock,” the Gore Verbinski-directed live action adaptation of the bestselling Take-Two Interactive vidgame. The picture was in pre-production, but the studio has halted that effort–and let some production staff go–as Universal and Verbinski figure out a way to make the film at a more reasonable budget.
Sources said that the John Logan-scripted picture was gearing up to shoot in Los Angeles, but that changed when the budget rose to the vicinity of $160 million. U and Verbinski are looking at alternatives like shooting in London as a way to pare costs. The plotline takes place in the underwater city Rapture, where a pilot crash-lands near a secret entrance and becomes involved in a power struggle.
“We were asked by Universal to move the film outside the U.S. to take advantage of a tax credit,” Verbinski said. “We are evaluating whether this is something we want to do. In the meantime, the film is in a holding pattern.”

Variety go on to say that everyone involved intends to make the film, and that it won’t become another Halo (with studios bailing due to costs) so fans should not be too worried. Ridley Scott’s Robin Hood experienced a similar situation, but is now filming after they found a way to reduce the budget.

Gore Verbinski will not be directing Pirates of the Caribbean 4

Liam — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 04:08:10 +0000

Pirates of the Caribbean trilogy director Gore Verbinski has decided not to get back into the directors chair for Pirates of the Caribbean 4 according to Variety.

Verbinski has informed Disney and producer Jerry Bruckheimer that he will not helm a fourth installment that’s expected to set sail in 2010 with Johnny Depp back as Captain Jack Sparrow.
Sequel is in development but not yet greenlit. It’s unknown how Verbinski’s ankling will affect the pic’s schedule.
“I had a fantastic time bringing ‘Pirates’ to life, and I am eternally grateful to Jerry, Johnny and the rest of the creative and production team,” Verbinski said. “I’m looking forward to all of us crossing paths again in the future.”

This is understandable considering Gore has spent 6 years of his life surrounded by pirates. While the exotic filming locations will no doubt have been tempting, most directors prefer to use their creative talents on different things. Variety say that Gore will instead be focusing on the movie adaptation of Bioshock, which he has been attached to direct since May last year. Filming on that is expected to begin sometime in 2010, so Gore will not be escaping the sea entirely, as Bioshock mostly takes place under it (or in it if you want to be technical).

This obviously means Disney will be searching for a new director for Pirates 4, which won’t necessarily be a bad thing depending on who they get. Someone else guiding Captain Jack Sparrow on another adventure will be interesting, and some fans of the trilogy may welcome it. Screenwriters Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio will be back to write the script, so we shouldn’t expect anything too drastically different from what we saw in the trilogy.

BioShock Movie Gets Gore Verbinski!

Liam — Fri, 09 May 2008 22:23:58 +0000

Director of the Pirates of the Caribbean trilogy Gore Verbinski, will be returning to the sea, but in a different kind of way, as he has signed up to direct the game to movie adaptation of BioShock. It is believed to be the biggest game-to-movie deal since 2005, when Universal and Fox signed onto the Halo movie, which is still not moving forward.

Variety report:

“Bioshock” takes place in an underwater city based on the free market principles of Ayn Rand, but things have gone disastrously wrong. Players control a pilot who crash-lands at a secret entrance to the city, called Rapture, and is drawn into a power struggle during which he discovers that his will is not as free as he’d thought.
“I think the whole utopia-gone-wrong story that’s cleverly unveiled to players is just brimming with cinematic potential,” said Verbinski. “Of all the games I’ve played, this is one that I felt has a really strong narrative.”

Though no release date has been set, Verbinski said he plans to start pre-production as soon as Aviator writer John Logan’s script is finished and approved.

BioShock has sold more than 2 million units worldwide since its release in August 2007 and has been praised for its morality-based storyline, immersive environment and Ayn Rand-inspired dystopian setting. A sequel to the game, BioShock 2, is planned for a release in 2009.