6 May 2003
Variety.com - click
here for original source
'Great'
race takes a twist
Luhrmann's pic
waits til 2005
By Gabriel Snyder
Baz Luhrmann will take his time in the great race to make "Alexander the Great."
While Oliver Stone is
trying to get his version of "Alexander" into theaters for
Thanksgiving 2004, Luhrmann and producer Dino De Laurentiis now say their pic
will not be released until at least late 2005.
De Laurentiis told Daily Variety that Luhrmann plans to start filming his
Leonardo DiCaprio and Nicole Kidman starrer in Morocco early next year. At
Cannes this month, De Laurentiis will be selling the foreign territories he
retained in the co-financing deal between Universal and DreamWorks.
The ambitious project -- which carries a budget of around $150 million --
requires the casting of some 70 speaking rolesas well as hordes of extras
(supplied from the Moroccan army by King Mohammed VI).
"This huge preparation can't be done in less than eight or nine
months," said De Laurentiis, casting some skepticism on whether the Stone
project, to be distributed by Warner Brothers and financed by Intermedia, could
keep to its 2004 date.
Stone's project will star Colin Farrell in the title role, and Anthony Hopkins
recently boarded to co-star. (Daily Variety, May 5)
Intermedia chief Moritz Borman reiterated confidence in his production schedule,
adding that the pic had 30 staffers already on the payroll. "Set designs
are done, the costumes are done. They're working on a full pre-production
schedule," he said.
Effects unit photography was recently completed in the Himalayas, and production
is skedded to begin in Morocco in July for a month. Production will resume there
in September after the desert heat subsides.
"From a pure production schedule, there's no reason we can't deliver it
before fall next year," Borman said.
Luhrmann now plans to begin his principal photography in April 2004 and shoot
for six months. (Borman said Stone plans to shoot for 12 weeks.)
Looking to re-emphasize their project's viability, the Luhrmann camp on Tuesday
marshaled key talent to demonstrate support for their film in the face of a
competing project.
"What most attracts me is the complex character of Alexander himself,"
said DiCaprio, who will next make Howard Hughes biopic "The Aviator"
with Martin Scorsese. "His legend is one of the most compelling stories in
human history."
Kidman, who will play Olympia, said, "She is unlike any other woman I've
played before, and it's a role I'm really looking forward to."
Luhrmann has been trying to get his "Alexander" epic off the ground
for the last decade. 20th Century Fox was originally going to partner with
Universal, but stepped out. Then DreamWorks stepped in.
The pic was also impacted by the U.S. war in Iraq, which briefly led to plans to
shoot in Luhrmann's native Australia. Production is now again planned for
Morocco.
If both projects go forward, it's possible that the two "Alexander"
epics could reach screens within a year of each other.
Intermedia's Borman said there was room for both.
"Oliver and I have always said there's nothing wrong with two Alexander
projects," he said. "On the surface it might not make sense. But they
just have to be vastly different, and with those two filmmakers they are."