World War Z News - Possible SPOILERS

[JoeD80]

I'd be happy with a different director anyway. Someone else will probably come in and like the script; this doesn't necessarily mean any delays.

[frulad]

Max Brooks will be at Wizard World in Philly this weekend, so I'll try and ask him if he knows what's up...

[Jan]

Excellent, thanks Frulad!

Jan

[frulad]

OK, its true. They are looking for a new writer.

And Max Brooks, an admitted B5 fan, sounded a bit annoyed by it all.

[Jan]

Is this something that Brooks said in a panel, Frulad, or was it an interview? If true, it's a shame because JMS would have kept the integrity of the book in his script.

Jan

[frulad]

I missed his panel Friday night, so this was in an impromptu interview. He knew I was media and he grabbed my recorder and spoke directly into it.

[Jan]

Thanks, Frulad. I asked because he doesn't seem to have said anything in his panel(s) that I can find. And while I don't doubt that he said it, I can't help but wonder how much knowledge he's likely to have...though given who his father is, he might be more 'in the loop' than most writers would be.

Let's hope that if there is a re-write that Plan B has more class than Top Cow was a while back.

Jan

ETA: Looks like somebody possibly involved with the original article may have responded to what I wrote on the moderated newsgroup. Unfortunately I can't get the link to work this morning.

Manuel Puppis View profile
More options Jun 20, 1:10 pm

Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.tv.babylon5.moderated
From: Manuel Puppis <pup...@gmx.net>
Date: Sat, 20 Jun 2009 19:10:47 +0200
Local: Sat, Jun 20 2009 1:10 pm
Subject: Re: Bad news on WWZ ?


> That seems odd to me and I wonder if it might be a bad translation from the
> original interview? After all, JMS posted on Nov. 13 that he was finishing up
> the script after having gotten the director's notes.
> http://jmsnews.com/msg.aspx?ID=1-17739&topic=Writing
> As fast as he writes, in the past 7 months he could've re-written the thing 5
> times by now!


I didn't translate it, but unfortunately the translation is correct. If
you want to read the interview:
http://migrosmagazin.ch/index.cfm?id=33292

ETA2: Can't find the poster's name on the interview so maybe he's just somebody who can read it in the original language. The translation seems clear using the online translation programs I've found.

[Jan]

JMS has answered now:

One of the things that distinguishes film from TV is that it's the
norm for a script to go through many, many hands on the way to
production, which is why you see so many writers' names on movies.
(As a parenthetical, so you can follow the process better, when you
see "Written by A & B" it means that A and B were actually
collaborators on the film, whereas "Written by A and B" means that B
was brought in separately.) Ivan Reitman, for instance, always has
one writer do a pass for character, another does a pass for humor,
another does a pass for action...and so on. This is just part of the
feature business, especially once a director comes on board, who may
have ideas of his own that he wants to incorporate and the original
writer has gone through all the contractual drafts, so that either you
re-hire the same guy, or bring in fresh eyes.

So yes, another pair of hands is now working to simplify the script,
which has always been as much a political thriller as an action film,
into something a bit more straightforward.

jms

[ninjrk]

Well, that sucks. Probably trying to make it a more generic zombie film. Something tells me they won't bring in someone of JMS's ability to rewrite it.

[Jonas]

That sucks donkeyballs.

I'm very disappointed. I adore the book, which is really one of the most original and compelling books I've read in ages. And Joe was the perfect writer for the adaptation. If Max Brooks himself thinks they're killing it... yeah. Not good.

That's the biggest problem with being a writer in Hollywood. You have no control over your work. Another reason to work towards being a writer/director, if one is so inclined.

[JoeD80]

Originally Posted by jms

So yes, another pair of hands is now working to simplify the script,
...
into something a bit more straightforward.

Originally Posted by ninjrk

Well, that sucks. Probably trying to make it a more generic zombie film.

Sure sounds like it. "More straightforward" sounds like "more mindless and easier to market to the popcorn crowd."

[Night Marshal]

be interesting to see if JMS even keeps his name on his after the rewrite. He has been known to take his name of things that are taken out of his control or he didn't feel he played a large part in.

[SmileOfTheShadow]

This is disappointing. I've been looking forward to this beyond many other movies after reading WWZ, which was a great book. I have been wondering how on earth they plan to make that into a coherent movie and actually keep the book's story in tact.

[Jan]

JMS responds to somebody over-thinking his WWZ post:

First, Joe's response to your note is exactly right on every count.

Second, on the broader semantic issue...I wouldn't say dispassionate
was the right word, because I'm very passionate about everything I
work on, especially when I believe strongly in something.

The difference, and this may be the key word, is that for the last
two, three years, ever since Changeling switched my life upside-down,
I've been...calmer. It's really hard to explain, because I've lived
most of my life like a man running for a bus, but something *happened*
with that event, and the assignments afterward, and the people I've
been honored enough to work with. Rather than getting all puffed up
like a pouter-pigeon, it's made me quieter, calmer...things that used
to drive me batshit, no longer do.

So when another guy comes onto WWZ, as is the tendency of the business
(I get 2-5 feature scripts per *week* with offers to rewrite, most of
which I turn down because I look at the name of the writer on the
cover and know I'm not fit to carry that person's pencil-box let alone
rewrite them), it's okay, not just because that's the nature of the
feature world, but because...well...I'm honestly okay with it. And if
that moves it closer to getting produced, I'm even more okay with it.

A lot of the people around me keep looking at me with that whole
Invasion of the Body Snatchers "who ARE you and what have you done
with Joe?" look in their eyes, because they've never really seen me
quiet, or centered.

With Changeling, and the work thereafter, I kind of proved what I set
out to prove. It's kind of like Zack in SiL, where he talks about how
they did everything they set out to do. I've ended up in my own
narrative, which is REALLY weird, but all the same...it's just a
really happy time. I've doing some of the best work of my career, I'm
busier than at any time in my professional life, including B5, and I'm
working with some amazing, amazing people.

But I'll try to find something to get cranky about. Old habits die
hard, after all.

jms

Jan

[Jan]

Looks like they've chosen the new writer for WWZ.

Now taking on the adaptation reins is Matthew Michael Carnahan, a specialist in political thrillers whose credits include STATE OF PLAY and THE KINGDOM.

Jan