Variety reports that Universal Pictures has decided to produce a big budget reimagiging of Herman Melville’s classic literary tale Moby Dick with Russian director Timur Bekmambetov (Wanted) to work from a screenplay being written by Adam Cooper and Bill Collage for “a high six figures.”
The Variety story details some of the changes that are being planned for the new version of Melville’s tale:
The writers revere Melvilles original text, but their graphic novel-style version will change the structure. Gone is the first-person narration by the young seaman Ishmael, who observes how Ahabs obsession with killing the great white whale overwhelms his good judgment as captain.
This change will allow them to depict the whales decimation of other ships prior to its encounter with Ahabs Pequod, and Ahab will be depicted more as a charismatic leader than a brooding obsessive.
“Our vision isnt your grandfathers Moby Dick, ” Cooper said. “This is an opportunity to take a timeless classic and capitalize on the advances in visual effects to tell what at its core is an action-adventure revenge story.”
In the meantime, Bekmambetov is already developing a sequel to the summer sleeper hit starring James McAvoy and Angelina Jolie.
You can read the full story on Variety.
