With Lisbeth Salander yet to be cast and with shooting on “The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo” still a month or so away from commencing, Sony aren’t wasting any time in putting their ducks in a row in the highly anticipated English-language adaptation of Stieg Larsson’s best selling Millenium Trilogy.
Deadline reports that Sony have begun deal talks with ‘Dragon Tattoo’ scribe Steve Zaillian (“Schindler’s List,” “American Gangster”) to pen the second installment, “The Girl Who Played With Fire.” While only Daniel Craig has signed on for all three films, David Fincher does have an option to direct a second film though he recently cautioned about getting ahead of himself saying, “You got to make one [film] that people want to see a sequel to before you can make a sequel.”
Well, Sony is already counting the cash a blockbuster movie version will bring in, and we’re not surprised that they want to have a script at the ready should the box office for ‘Dragon Tattoo’ match their expectations. Zaillian is apparently finishing work on ‘Dragon Tattoo’ and Sony want him to move right into ‘Played With Fire’ after. Part of the reason they want the script done quickly is to try and get a tentative schedule in place to shoot the second installment as it will hinge on Craig’s involvement in “Bond 23” (if it gets up and running) and even, potentially, a sequel to “Cowboys & Aliens” which he’s shooting now. That’s frankly the first we’re hearing about a sequel to Jon Favreau’s forthcoming film, but it’s not a total shocker. It’s very firmly a tentpole with franchise potential so no wonder Universal and DreamWorks are keeping that door open.
Word is still out on who will land the coveted role of Lisbeth Salander. This past Sunday six of eight contenders — Emily Browning (“Sucker Punch”), Sara Snook (“Sleeping Beauty”), Rooney Mara (“The Social Network”), Sophie Lowe (“Blame”), Lea Seydoux (“Robin Hood”), Ellen Page and Mia Wasikowska — ran through full tests in costume, make-up, piercings, and acting opposite the already-cast Daniel Craig. No word yet on if a winner emerged, but we would wager a decision should be coming shortly.
“The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo” will hit theaters on December 21, 2011.
