So what are the chances Kristen Stewart's roll in the hay with director Rupert Sanders just cost her the Snow White and the Huntsman sequel? Eh, probably not that much, but the fact that so many are asking that same question can't really be good for the Stewart camp.
Here's the deal: Deadline is reporting that Universal is continuing to weigh their options on how best to follow-up the summer hit, which grossed just shy of $400M at the box office. Not bad, but hardly gangbusters in this day and age. Currently they're trying to figure out whether to do a straight up sequel, or possibly spin the Huntsman character off into his own solo franchise. That would give Chris Hemsworth yet another franchise to call his own, while Stewart would likely be dropped. It's unclear how Charlize Theron fits into either scenario. Nothing has been finalized at this point, but Universal knows enough that they've dropped Davod Koepp, who had been hired back in April to start work on a script. Making it even less likely this is just another shot across Kristen Stewart's bow, we first learned plans of a Huntsman spinoff back in April, so it's possible Universal is just considering what we already knew.
As for Sanders, he's not inked to a deal no matter which direction they choose, but he's still the likely candidate to remain on board. And clearly, Universal has faith in him, as they've just picked up the rights to Dean Unkefor's upcoming novel, 90 Church: The True Story of the Narcotics Squad From Hell, with plans for Sanders to direct. The book follows a team of Federal Bureau of Narcotics agents in NYC who use any means necessary to combat organized crime in the 1960s and 1970s.
So don't listen to those reports that are saying Stewart's already out the door. Nothing's concrete yet, although the writing does appear to be on the wall, doesn't it?
