Denzel Washington Loosely Attached To Project
Update: THR reveals that Denzel Washington is “loosely attached” to star.
With “Mars Needs Moms” officially killing off any hope for a bright future for Robert Zemeckis-style motion capture-driven animation, and with Disney pulling the plug on his “Yellow Submarine” project (which IMDB erroneously has listed as being in post-production for some reason), Zemeckis clearly needs to make a gear change and it looks he’s returning with a live action feature, his first in over a decade since 2000’s “Cast Away.”
Deadline reports that the director is chatting with Paramount to direct “Flight.” Written by John Gatins (“Coach Carter,” “Real Steel” which Zemeckis happens to be producing) the story follows a commercial airline pilot unfortunately named Whip Whitaker, who is labeled a hero after he successfully lands his plane full of passengers after a malfunction on board. However, an investigation turns up the fact that he was under the influence of drugs and alcohol while flying, as he struggles with the hero status he now must wear, and the pilot’s union and airline keep the truth under wraps to prevent a scandal. We have to say, it sounds exactly like the meaty, character-driven fare Zemeckis needs to do to bounce back.
If the name Gatins seems familiar, that’s because DreamWorks just hired him to write the “Real Steel” sequel so he’s a bit of a hot commodity right now. As for Zemeckis it’s not guaranteed to be his next film just yet, but everyone is hoping to get him on board and get this thing rolling as early as this summer. But so far, it seems like a smart choice and we hope that Zemeckis sticks to this path.