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Monday
10Nov2008

Brett Ratner Officially Directing 'Conan'

DateMonday, November 10, 2008 at 11:44AM
All the speculation is over, and Brett Ratner will, in fact, direct the new reboot of the Conan franchise. The Hollywood Reporter reveals that the project, which Nu Image/Millenium and Lionsgate are pegging as an $85 million venture, will wrestle with the other project nobody really wants Brett Ratner to touch, Beverly Hills Cop 4, for first in line on the director's to-do list.

Conan is being described as a "hard R" reinvention of the series, written by Joshua Oppenheimer and Thomas Dean Donnelly, who are now writing another draft of the story that includes some of Ratner's ideas, hopefully none of which involve his constant affection for Guitar Hero. The plan is to have the film ready to go for a 2010 release, and Nu Image/Millennium is already saying they'd like this to be a franchise. Whether Ratner would direct future installments has not been reported.

"The story opens on the battlefield where Conan is born and tells the origin story that sets the stage for what will be the first of multiple films," said Millennium's Avi Lerner. "This is a coup for Millennium Films and proves that our choice of projects and material is attracting much higher-profile directors and actors."

It's a big gamble, however. $85 million isn't a hell of a lot of money by today's movie standards, but when you look at the past two years, you'll only find a total of 46 movies that have earned $100 million or better in the U.S., so that's an average of roughly two movies a month, although most of them are clearly summer releases. Can Conan attract a big crowd in an already packed summer of 2010, or will it try to make its coin outside summer, which traditionally isn't as strong?

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AuthorColin Boyd | | in , , | Print ArticlePrint Article | | Comment2 Comments |

Reader Comments (2)

I'm Officially Not Going To Watch Conan The Re-Make...Brett Ratner Has No Soul. I'm Sorry...But He Doesn't...Stop Makng Movies...Please And Thanks. Canadian Boy From The Pas,Mb.

Monday, November 10, 2008 | Unregistered CommenterJim Conan

If You're Throwing Money Away...Why Don't You Throw Some Cash Into My Movie..."Evil Ted" By Sam Remi? I'd Go Watch It. Canada Is Cold!

Monday, November 10, 2008 | Unregistered CommenterSam Remi

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