Ridley Scott’s “Pompeii” gets a writer
After a relatively long span of time languishing in production purgatory, Ridley Scott has finally nabbed himself a writer for one of the most anticipated projects to fall victim during the 2007 writers strike.
Variety is reporting that legendary writer Robert Towne (CHINATOWN, THE LAST DETAIL) will pen the mini-series adaptation of the Robert Harris novel, Pompeii.
Originally slated to be helmed by Roman Polanski, and starring Scarlett Johansson and Orlando Bloom, the film’s budget ultimately became an issue, particularly when added to the issues caused by the strike, leading Polanski to skip the project, and direct THE GHOST WRITER, another Harris adaptation. Ridley Scott came in to pick up the rights, and now plans on bringing it to television in mini-series form.
Now, talk about talent.Towne is one of the most iconic writers around, having crafted masterful screenplays for the aforementioned CHINATOWN and DETAIL, as well as MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE. This project follows Marcus Attilius Primus who, while dealing with the construction of new aqueducts, must deal with the discovery that Vesuvius is set to erupt. Sounds like a great premise, and while I’ve not read the book, the combo of Towne and Scott is one that sounds too good to fail.
What do you think?
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