We’re a week behind, there was a film festival going on.
Last week we spoke to Zach Galifianakis as part of press rounds for Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck’s “It’s Kind Of A Funny Story.” The directors themselves told us their adaptation of Marisha Pessl’s celebrated novel “Calamity Physics” for Miramax was probably dead or at least in full-on limbo.
We spoke with Galifianakis and he had some potential bad news about a highly anticipated project we’re looking forward to; “Will,” a Valerie Faris and Jonathan Dayton (“Little Miss Sunshine”) project, written by Demetri Martin and produced by Will Ferrell and Adam McKay, that was announced last year and would feature “The Hangover” star and Paul Rudd.
Last we heard there were some problems and issues. Paramount was allegedly unhappy with the script, but Adam McKay sounded optimistic. But in our more recent conversation with Galifianakis, the actor sounded unsure about its ability to get made.
“I don’t know if that is ever going to come together,” Galifianakis said about the film’s chances of coming to the screen. “It is a movie written by Demetri Martin and it’s one of the better scripts I’ve ever read. And I hope to get to make it. In this business there’s a lot of red tape and that red tape has not been made into pink yet. I know they’re trying to figure it out.”
As for the myriad other projects reportedly on his plate — “Say Uncle,” “Miracle Workers,” Dreamworks’ “Reply All” and John Carney’s “Town House” opposite Amy Adams — Galifianakis says don’t get your hopes up and don’t always believe everything you read in the trades.
“I’m gonna tell you right now, half of those [films] are not [happening],” he said emphatically, not elaborating on which project he was or was no longer involved in . “It’s crazy, you have a conversation with somebody in Hollywood and then all the sudden you’re ‘doing it.’ I don’t know where it comes from. And it gets reported that it’s happening, and it’s not true.”
Personally, our hope that if one of these projects is a go, it’s “Town House,” as the director of “Once,” plus Galifianakis and Amy Adams, sounds like a great combination, but if you read that original Variety story it sadly sounds like this one might be one of those premature reports. — Reporting by Christopher Bell