Disney is cooking up another live-action take on one of its animated classics, but don't expect a shot-for-shot remake this time around.
Predator: Badlands and 10 Cloverfield Lane director Dan Trachtenberg is onboard to direct, and his project is shaping up to be more of a loose, genre-heavy spin on Sleeping Beauty instead of a traditional retelling.
Per Deadline, "The untitled project is in early development and is said to take the story in an entirely new direction with Trachtenberg’s distinct sensibility."
Dan Trachtenberg is known for taking wild genre mashups, throwing in a terrifying creature, and grounding the chaos with real, practical effects.
Instead of relying on chaotic shaky-cam, he keeps his action crisp and easy to follow, slowly cranking up the tension until you're glued to your seat in full-blown paranoia.
Put him in charge of a classic fairy tale, and you can practically kiss traditional tropes goodbye, as his track record is all about gritty survival stories powered by hyper-resourceful protagonists.
As such, one shouldn't expect to see a Princess Aurora that's passively waiting around for Prince Charming to come save her with a kiss. It's also a safe bet that Kinberg is going to put his distinct creature lens on Maleficent- particularly her dragon form.
And speaking of the latter, Deadline reports that Trachtenberg's project has no ties to Angelina Jolie's Maleficent franchise.
Trachtenberg and Rayna McClendon (Willow, Marvel's Armor Wars) developed the story with the writing team of Alex Anfanger and Dan Schimpf (Big Time in Hollywood, FL) penning the script.
Trachtenberg is reportedly in pre-production on a top-secret pic at Paramount, so his Sleeping Beauty project is likely a few years out.
Earlier this year, he signed a 3-year deal with Paramount and teased this about the collaboration: " The Paramount deal includes an original project they’re excited about and I’m excited about. But they also have very cool toys. A lot of what I’ve made has been fueled by “no’s.” I’ve pitched bold ideas for other franchises that were too bold. So I’d take that concept and redirect it."
"Killer of Killers came from an idea I pitched elsewhere — people fighting across eras. They didn’t go for it. But it worked perfectly for Predator. Before Badlands, I pitched focusing on a creature species instead of humans. That got a no. Years later, that idea resurfaced."
There's heavy speculation that Trachtenberg's mystery project is Star Trek-related, but those rumors remain unconfirmed for now.