Movie development is always interesting to watch, both to see how a movie changes shape and who could or could not have taken it on at any time. "Dead Spy Running" has been kicking around Warner Bros. for a while now, with the studio picking up the project in 2008 with McG first considering the gig, after which, in 2009, "Traffic" scriber Stephan Gaghan was brought on to write and possibly direct. And while the latter didn't happen, "50/50" helmer Jonathan Levine was in talks this spring for the job, and though those conversations didn't pan out, WB has a new man ready to take it on.
"You're Next" and "A Horrible Way To Die" helmer Adam Wingard is now on board to direct with his pal Simon Barrett lined up to rewrite the script. And the premise, about a DJ who has to go on the run after he's framed for the death of his MI6 agent father's murder is a bit….preposterous. Here's how Deadline breaks it down:
Based on the series of novels by Jon Stock, Dead Spy Running follows Danny Marchant, a young DJ on the rise in the international world of electronic dance music. Danny is forced to go on the run with a beautiful secret agent assigned to watch him after he is framed for his MI6 agent father’s murder. As Danny tries to clear his name and avenge his father’s death, he gets deeper into the world of espionage while never forgetting his background and skills as a DJ. Danny must ultimately rise up and defeat a terrorist intent on destroying western civilization in an adventure that takes him through the world to London, Paris, Corsica, New York, and Mumbai.
So yeah, it sounds a bit silly — we're not sure how beat matching and knowledge of where to find obscure Latin jazz LPs will assist you while you're on the run — but we have faith in Wingard. In fact, we named him on our 2012 list of directors to watch out for, and he's already shown a clever knack for completely subverting genre expectations. So fingers crossed here, and we'll definitely be anxious to see what Wingard will be able to do with studio money at his fingertips.