Following Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, it’s always a good day when we learn that we’ll have to wait a little longer to see the next film from the team that brought us that vapid blockbuster. First announced over a year-and-a-half-ago, director Rob Marshall (Chicago, Nine) and Johnny Depp have been planning to remake the 1934 detective comedy classic The Thin Man, but now those plans have halted to a stop.
Deadline reports that Warner Bros. have smartened up and realized that maybe bringing back an old property with Depp in the center wasn’t a good idea, after Tim Burton‘s Dark Shadows grossed far less than his previous film, with the same poor critical results. The film had yet to be greenlit, and although they had a shortlist of actresses (Eva Green, Amy Adams, Emma Stone, Carey Mulligan, Rachel Weisz, Kristen Wiig, Emily Blunt and Isla Fisher), no casting had been made for the lead female role of Nora.
Also factoring into the decision was a reported $100 million budget, pure insanity for a relatively lowkey drama in a few locations. While the studio figures that out, Marshall will head to Disney to helm Into The Woods, a musical that interweaves fairytale stories and characters, including Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood and Jack (from the Beanstalk). As for Depp, he’s currently filming The Lone Ranger and has yet to decide what he’ll jump to next, but the duo plans to re-group after their upcoming projects and possibly return to this remake.
As reported, The Thin Man is a book from Dashiell Hammett, the iconic novelist who inspired one of film noir’s most esteemed entries: The Maltese Falcon. Notably The Thin Man is much lighter fare, featuring an eccentric trophy husband and his whip-smart bride as they gallivant about smugly solving mysteries and having adventures. The novel proved the basis of six films and a television show, making it a winsome franchise that spanned from 1934 to 1959. Jerry Stahl, David Koepp and Billy Ray have all had a pass on the script which will, of course, have a “contemporary feel.”
Are you upset we won’t see The Thin Man remake as soon as expected?