Variety reports that Relativity Media and Warners Brothers are battling over who will be the first to reach the screen with a big-budget fantasy film based on Greek Myth. Relativity is backing a film called WAR OF THE GODS, which had Warner Brothers had considered backing until they signed Louis Leterrier (THE INCREDIBLE HULK) to direct a remake of 1981’s CLASH OF THE TITANS instead. The CLASH remake had been in development a while but was immediately green-lit upon hiring the director; GODS meanwhile is racing to get started by the end of the year, with Tarsem Singh (THE CELL) directing from a script by Charley and Vlas Parlapanides. Unfortuantely, it sounds as if both films will be less interested in mythological fantasy than in recreating the sweaty, bare-pectoral, macho-posturing homo-eroticism of 300:
Both pictures are expected to use the greenscreen techniques that gave “300” a complex look at a reasonable budget.
War of Gods” is a co-production between “300” partners Gianni Nunnari of Hollywood Gang Prods. and Mark Canton of Canton Prods., both of whom will produce with Relativity’s Ryan Kavanaugh.
“Gianni and I both love epic mythology, and we have worked hard to find another project that will challenge the senses and once again take audiences into a fresh new cinematic world,” Canton said.
Hollywood Gang’s Craig J. Flores will exec produce with Relativity’s Tucker Tooley.
Nunnari said his film has the goods: “Gods, titans, warriors and a fantastic script. An incredibly visionary filmmaker like Tarsem and a partner like Relativity who fought and won already in a battle in getting the package that everybody wanted.”
Dueling pics also pit WB and Legendary, the co-financiers/co-producers of “300,” against Hollywood Gang and Canton. Each has an intertwined and victorious track record when competing on ancient period epics.
WB and Hollywood Gang were both involved in the Oliver Stone-directed “Alexander,” which won a race against a rival Alexander the Great pic mounted by Baz Luhrmannand Dino De Laurentiis. WB, Hollywood Gang and Canton were also the victors when the Zack Snyder-directed “300” made it into production before Universal’s adaptation of the Steven Pressfield bestseller “Gates of Fire” and a Fox remake of its 1962 film “The 300 Spartans.”
As for the race to the finish line, blogger Kev at Brock n’ Roll opines in favor of WAR OF THE GODS – working on the theory that CLASH OF THE TITANS was done right the first time and should not be remade at all.
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