The idea of a megabudget pirate movie used to be anathema to Hollywood studios -- thanks, Renny Harlin! -- but ever since Johnny Depp donned eye shadow and a tricorner hat, pirates have become big business again. (Fun fact: After Depp finishes this planned second Pirates of the Carribean trilogy, the Pirates franchise will clock in at over 14 hours.) Now, Steven Spileberg's getting in on the act, announcing his plans to direct Pirate Latitudes, based on a posthumously discovered novel by Michael Crichton. The important question: Will this derail Spielberg's superfluous Harvey remake?
Not likely, I'm sad to say. Frequent Spielberg scripter David Koepp just signed on to write the screenplay, so there's still plenty of time for Harvey to retain Spielberg's attention. Still, the imaginary rabbit film isn't set to go into production until 2010, and Spielberg has famously veered off course at the last minute before. Let's just wait and see if Harvey frontrunner Will Smith announces a new project soon; surely there were some black, Scientology-adjacent pirates back in 1665, right?
ยท Steven Spielberg to complete Michael Crichton's mission [USA Today]