For their work, Jeremy Kleiner and Dede Gardner, along with Pitt, will receive this year’s David O. Selznick Achievement Award at the Producers Guild Awards on Jan. 18.
The Plan B origin story is a two-parter. From 2001 to 2005, Brad Pitt ran the Oscar-winning production company behind The Departed with his then-wife, Jennifer Aniston, and the late Brad Grey. But in 2005, Grey took the top job at Paramount, and the high-profile couple split, leaving Pitt in need of a new brain trust. Enter Dede Gardner and Jeremy Kleiner, both recent hires at Plan B who helped usher in the company’s new era, which has spanned hit films like World War Z and Eat Pray Love and two more best picture wins with 12 Years a Slave and Moonlight.
Fifteen years and nearly 30 films later, Plan B remains one of the most envied banners in Hollywood. Since 2013, Gardner, 52, and Kleiner, 43, have run the company with Pitt as a triumvirate and have moved aggressively in TV, backing such Emmy winners as The Normal Heart and Feud: Bette and Joan. For their work, the pair, along with Pitt, 56, will receive this year’s David O. Selznick Achievement Award at the Producers Guild Awards on Jan. 18.
Category: World War Z 2
David Fincher’s ‘World War Z’ Sequel Shuts Down at Paramount Over Reported Budget Issues
David Fincher’s highly anticipated “World War Z” sequel is reportedly no longer in development at Paramount. Sources close to production say the budget was the issue. David Fincher was apparently willing to direct the sequel for less than the $190 million price tag of the first movie, but the money required to pull of the film was still too high for Paramount. Production on the “World War Z” sequel was going to kick off in June. The film would have reunited Fincher with Brad Pitt after films such as “Fight Club” and “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.” Marc Forster directed the original “World War Z,” which Paramount released in theaters during summer 2013. The movie was based on Max Brooks’ 2006 novel of the same name and starred Pitt as a former UN employee who travels the globe to find a cure to stop a massive zombie pandemic. The film was a sizable hit with audiences ($540 million worldwide), but its $190 million budget made it less of a financial win for Paramount than the studio wanted. Pitt has long wanted to return for a sequel.
‘Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom’ Director Explains Why He Exited ‘World War Z’ Sequel
Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom director J.A. Bayona stepped away from helming Brad Pitt’s World War Z sequel just before its planned production start because he wasn’t the right fit for the job, Bayona told Den of Geek.
“We were working on that project for around a year, and we had a great idea,” Bayona said. “We were very excited. We designed great set pieces, and we were very excited with the direction we were taking with the film, but somehow, we never found a way to connect it all together.”
“There was a moment where we were about to start production, and I wasn’t ready,” he added. “I told them and I said, ‘Listen, I’m not the right guy for this. There’s probably another guy who’s able to take care of this in a way that the movie will not get affected,’ so I decided to step out of the project.”
Asked about his original plans for World War Z 2, Bayona said, “I would prefer not to tell you, because they’re working on it now. I had a conversation with them recently, and they’re very excited, so I prefer them to talk about it.”
‘World War Z 2’ Not Shooting This Fall; David Fincher’s ‘Mindhunter’ Season 2 Is Next
It didn’t quite pass the smell test considering what was brewing in the works. Earlier this year, reports flew around that David Fincher‘s “World War Z” sequel might be gearing up for a fall 2018 shoot. It seemed unlikely then, given what we were hearing and sources close to the project have confirmed to us that it’s definitely not happening at all. That’s because, quietly in the works, Fincher’s Netflix show “Mindhunter” season two is next. And not only upcoming, but production begins at the end of this month. Fincher and crew have been in pre-production for months holed up in Pittsburgh and they’re gearing up for a lengthy shoot to follow-up their critically-acclaimed serial-killers show starring Jonathan Groff and Holt McCallany (“Fight Club“).
The untitled “World War Z” sequel draft is still in development and apparently not ready quite yet, but some scouting has taken place in Bilbao, Spain, Sweden, Texas and other locales around the world. Fincher will be occupied with “Mindhunter” throughout the summer and into the fall with post-production, so you can put away those hopes of a “World War Z” follow-up going into production any time soon. Try next fall maybe?
David Fincher Close to Deal to Direct ‘World War Z 2’
After previously taking the film off its calendar, Paramount Pictures and Skydance Productions look to be moving forward with a “World War Z” sequel, with David Fincher directing and Brad Pitt back to star, thanks to the studio’s new chairman and CEO Jim Gianopulos, according to knowledgeable sources.
While Gianopulos has not officially official greenlit the movie yet, he is expected to do so in coming weeks. This will likely be among the studio chief’s first greenlit movies. Sources say that production would probably begin in the first quarter of 2018.
A spokesperson for the studio has not yet responded to a request for comment.
Variety first reported last summer that Pitt had been courting Fincher to direct the pic and that the director was intrigued by the idea. The plans had to be put on hold while Pitt dealt with his divorce from Angelina Jolie, and were put into question once the studio, then headed by Brad Grey, took the film off the calendar to consider whether or not to move forward with the tentpole.
