While a film like The Crow has encountered so many problems it seems it may never get off the ground, there is good news for another troubled production that has had trouble holding on to talent. Passengers, the sci-fi film that once was set to star Keanu Reeves and Reese Witherspoon, then Reeves and Rachel McAdams before settling on Chris Pratt and Jennifer Lawrence, has now been given the green light by Sony.
The film has been a hot prospect for awhile now, thanks to a script by Jon Spaihts (Prometheus) that has been able to get a ton of attention. Directed by Oscar nominee Morten Tyldum (The Imitation Game), the story centers on a passenger on a centuries-long voyage to another planet. When he's woken up early from hypersleep, he's faced with the prospect of dying alone, so he wakes up a beautiful passenger to keep him company.
The production's biggest problem has been budgetary. Weinstein held the rights at one point before dropping it, then Focus Features toyed with the idea of distributing the film before Sony swooped in. But there was the issue of the high dollars commanded by Lawrence and Pratt, and now those problems have been resolved. She'll get a massive $20M salary against 30% of the profit once the film breaks even. Pratt, who only led Jurassic World to a record-breaking debut last weekend, will get $12M, up from the $10M he was going to receive. Holy monkey that's a lot of scratch.
Overall, the budget is expected to hit around $120M which sounds like a lot for a non-franchise sci-fi film, especially since it was only $35M when Reeves and McAdams were on board. But Sony is sharing the cost with other investors, and having Pratt and Lawrence starring should help pack the seats. Filming is set to begin in July. [THR]
