Michael Arndt is Catching Fire. The Oscar-winning writer behind emotional roller coasters Toy Story 3 and Little Miss Sunshine is now in talks to do a re-write on Simon Beaufoy’s (Slumdog Millionaire) treatment of Catching Fire, the second installment of The Hunger Games series. Lionsgate has yet to land the writer, but if they do, he’ll have to work fast. Catching Fire is scheduled to shoot sometime this fall so that star Jennifer Lawrence can fulfill her commitments to Fox’s sequel to X-Men: First Class. Director Francis Lawrence (I Am Legend) is now officially on board, taking over the franchise from Gary Ross, who steered the first movie to a box office north of $600 million.
Catching Fire stars Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Liam Hemsworth, Lenny Kravitz, Elizabeth Banks, Stanley Tucci, Donald Sutherland, Toby Jones, and Woody Harrelson and begins filming this fall before opening November 22, 2013. Hit the jump for more.
Heat Vision reports
that Arndt is in the mix to re-write the Catching Fire script. While having Beaufoy on board was a boon to the project to begin with, the possibility of having Arndt step-up the re-write gives me even more confidence. However, whether the considerable talent behind the script and on screen will rise above the challenges or whether the whole production will be sunk due to the tight shooting schedule, only time will tell. Check out a synopsis from Catching Fire, the second novel in Suzanne Collins’ The Hunger Games series (via Amazon):
Against all odds, Katniss Everdeen has won the annual Hunger Games with fellow district tribute Peeta Mellark. But it was a victory won by defiance of the Capitol and their harsh rules. Katniss and Peeta should be happy. After all, they have just won for themselves and their families a life of safety and plenty. But there are rumors of rebellion among the subjects, and Katniss and Peeta, to their horror, are the faces of that rebellion. The Capitol is angry. The Capitol wants revenge.
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rewriting a script for a movie that is gonna shoot in 3 months
yeah no need to be worried LOL
HA. You obviously have no idea how the filmmaking process works. The majority of films are rewritten before shooting begins, and many during as well. Sometimes the revisions are big, and sometimes all that’s needed is a polish. But try and figure this out next time before sounding like a complete think you know everything idiot….
i agree this movie is being rushed and it’s going to bomb as far as qaulity goes, but it’s still going to make millions.
This happens ALL the time. For example, ‘Mission Impossible – Ghost Protocol’ didn’t have a real script when they started shooting. Just set pieces & character arch outlines.
I have hopes. ‘The Hunger Games’ really impressed me. I just hope the sequel is able to replicate a good portion of that success.
Meh. First one was underwhelming.