In an unusual move, Warner Bros and Legendary Pictures have brought two previously solitary writers together to work in concert on the “Clash of the Titans” sequel. It seems that in hiring Dan Mazeau (“The Flash,” “Jonny Quest”) they reckon they’ll fulfill their requisite tentpole-y things blowing up quotient, but by teaming him with David Leslie Johnson (“The Orphan,” “The Girl with the Red Riding Hood”) they’re also hoping to harness some of that writer’s darker, more character-based mojo.
Of course having different writers take various passes over a draft script according to what are judged to be their particular writing strengths is nothing new, in fact it has become standard practice – especially for films with any sort of budget. Here, however, it seems Legendary and WB hope to save on rewriting time, and create more a more coherent whole, by having the two disparate writers collaborate from the get go. The pair will work with Greg Berlanti (“Green Lantern”) on an outline and then bump heads on the screenplay, in the hopes that “Clash of the Titans 2: Even Clashier” (not actual title) might make into cinemas as early as Spring 2012.
‘Clash’ was a worldwide hit, eventually grossing over $486 million worldwide, but even straight out of the gate, less than a month after its release in the US, Berlanti had been approached to write up a treatment for the next installment. Such, clearly was the confidence that WB and Legendary felt in their new property, despite fairly poisonous reviews (RT 30%).
Sam Worthington (whose availability is another factor forcing the fasttracking of the script, as we reported) and Gemma Arteton look set to return which is, um, great (Mads Mikkelsen was, for this writer’s money the only actor who emerged with any dignity intact from “Clash” and even after he was *SPOILER ALERT* turned to stone by the Medusa showed more range than Mr Worthington), and the film will be shot in 3D this time, rather than having the 3D grafted onto it after the fact like the last one. Jonathan Liebesman is tipped to direct – for a brief “who he?” go here.
But the real story here is the two studios creating a writing partnership where none existed before. It’s a tricky proposition, with screenwriters as a breed not exactly being known for lacking ego and playing nice with others, but if it succeeds (for “success” read: script arrives on time, doesn’t require a million rewrites, and the resulting film makes money) we can expect to see this kind of thing happen more often. Whether studios will ever espouse the “writer’s room” more-the-merrier ethos of many US TV shows remains to be seen, but, as far as big-budget movies are concerned, this could herald the beginning of the end of the loneliness of the long-format screenwriter.