It seems like all the news coming out of the live-action Dumbo remake is more and more interesting. First, Tim Burton signed on as the extremely unlikely director, and now it looks like Disney is eyeing Will Smith for a starring role.
Though Smith is currently working toward the start date of the Joe Carnahan-directed Bad Boys for Life, which will feature him once again teaming up with Martin Lawrence, Disney is aggressively moving towards its own start of production. Ehren Kruger has written the script that has the potential to be a hit alongside previous Disney live action adaptations like Maleficent, Cinderella, and Burton’s Alice In Wonderland, which grossed $1.02 billion. After appearing recently in the holiday misfire Collateral Beauty, perhaps appearing in a Disney film would not be a bad move, though it is not yet clear who Smith will be playing.
IMDBRecently, Disney put several dates on hold for their upcoming films, including Star Wars, Spider-Man, and several dates for unnamed live action fairy tale adaptations including April 6, 2018, August 3, 2018, Christmas 2018, and December 20, 2019. While we don’t know which adaptation will go where, it is worth noting that, alongside Dumbo, Disney is also working on Cruella, the 101 Dalmatians prequel starring Emma Stone as the titular villain Cruella de Vil; Maleficent 2, The Mary Poppins sequel starring Emily Blunt and Lin-Manuel Miranda; The Jungle Book 2; and A Tinker Bell film staring Reese Witherspoon.
These live action adaptations are becoming a huge segment of Disney’s upcoming films, with most of them grossing over $700 million worldwide. Will Smith is currently shooting Bright, a Netflix film directed by Max Landis. Dumbo does not yet have a confirmed release date.
What fairy tale would like to see Disney adapt next? Name your favorite in the comments below!
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