“Uncharted” may be a massively popular video game franchise, but getting the movie made has proven to be all kinds of difficult. At one time, it was mooted for David O. Russell who eventually left the project and was replaced by Neil Burger, who also wound up exiting. Things have been kind of dormant for the past couple of years, but no more.
Seth Gordon (“The King Of Kong,” “Identity Thief“) has now been tapped to direct the flick, with a script from David Guggenheim (“Safe House,” “Stolen“). It’s a pretty big step up for Gordon who, until now, has mostly been known for studio and TV comedies and not the kind of grand blockbuster adventures fans of the game will be expecting. But he did direct a documentary about video games, so maybe that counts? At any rate, this still isn’t close to happening as a lead has yet to be found and, if the past few years are evidence of anything, we could be waiting a while.
Meanwhile, over to our comfort zone of movies actually about things, Julie Delpy—best known as the co-lead in the “Before Sunset” trilogy—is also a director who mostly takes on laughers (such as “2 Days In Paris” and the sequel “2 Days In New York“), with a brief detour into period drama with “The Countess.” Now, she’ll be visiting the early 1900s with “A Dazzling Display Of Splendor,” which she will both write and direct. Set during the silent film era and the rise of the automobile, this might be described as the original road trip flick, telling the story of a family of vaudeville performers traveling from New York to Los Angeles and making a movie along the way.
Delpy’s insight into family dynamics combined with the magic of moviemaking? Hell yeah, sign us up. Casting is currently underway. [Deadline/Variety]