Looks like Sam Worthington is really gunning to corner the market for leading actors of sci-fi films. On top of his continued involvement in James Cameron‘s “Avatar” trilogy and a film adaptation of little known British sci-fi action hero Dan Dare, the Australian thespian is now set to lead an upcoming sci-fi actioner scribed by Aaron Guzkowski, the writer of the Black-listed and highly-buzzed script “Prisoners.”
The latest project is being developed by Worthington’s “Clash Of The Titans” producer Basil Iwanyk with Warner Bros. reportedly making a preemptive pitch deal for what is simply being described as “a grounded space war film.”
Nothing else is known about it besides the five word logline at this stage but, with Guzikowski behind the typewriter, we’re expecting (and hoping) for something a bit more adventurous. His “‘Silence of the Lambs‘ meets ‘Seven‘” script for “Prisoners” — which now has Denis Villeneuve on board to direct — was merely a revenge tale centered on a Boston father but garnered interest from big-named talent including Bryan Singer, Christian Bale and Mark Wahlberg in one iteration (and may very well have been the groundwork to the “The Fighter“) and Hugh Jackman and Antoine Fuqua in another with Leonardo DiCaprio also interested at one point. Guzikowski also wrote upcoming Wahlberg-starrer “Contraband” so, surely, there’s some substance behind his sudden rise.
Iwanyk (“The Town“) is producing through his Thunder Road shingle which also has projects such as the Jeff Bridges led “Seventh Son” and Clint Eastwood‘s remake of “A Star Is Born” starring Beyonce in the works. No word on a production time frame but Worthington devotees shouldn’t fear: the actor is still due to hit the silver screen this year in long-delayed John Madden actioner “The Debt” as well as (presumably) Ami Canaan Mann‘s crime-thriller “The Fields” co-starring Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Jessica Chastain and Chloe Moretz. [Deadline]
