Andrew Stanton is known mostly for his significant body of work on animated films. However, the acclaimed filmmaker is now headed to live-action once again, set to direct a new science-fiction film for Searchlight Pictures called In the Blink of an Eye.
Development on the film was reported exclusively by The Hollywood Reporter, who broke the news of Stanton's return to a live-action set. Plot details on the film remain thin. According to information obtained by THR, though, In the Blink of an Eye will "explore no less than the entire history of the world and tackle the nature of life, love, hope and connection." The film will accomplish this by using an intersecting story of three different plotlines that span thousands of years. Stanton will reportedly use three iconic sci-fi and drama films to inspire the project: Christopher Nolan's Interstellar, Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey and Paul Thomas Anderson's Magnolia. No additional details surrounding a potential cast or the start of production were announced.
In the Blink of an Eye marks a relatively rare foray into live-action filmmaking for Stanton, who is best known for his collaborations with Pixar Animation. He has directed some of the studio's most iconic and beloved films, including 1998's A Bug's Life, 2008's Wall-E, 2003's Finding Nemo and its 2016 sequel, Finding Dory. He also co-wrote the scripts for 2001's Monsters, Inc. and all four films of the Toy Story franchise. While these animated tentpoles clearly form Stanton's most popular works, he has had some experience working with live-action. While this includes directing the 2012 sci-fi film John Carter, most of his live-action work has come as a television director, having helmed episodes of critically acclaimed shows such as Better Call Saul, Legion, For All Mankind, and Stranger Things. His work has earned him six Academy Award nominations, winning two.
While Stanton is at the film's forefront, he will be joined on the project by a number of other talented Hollywood mainstays. In the Blink of an Eye will be produced by Jared Ian Goldman, best known for his work on the Netflix series Russian Doll and the comedy drama film Ingrid Goes West. The film will be executive produced by Colby Day, who also wrote the project's screenplay. Day originally penned the script several years ago, and it was eventually featured on the 2017 Black List - an annual list of the best screenplays that have not yet been developed. Day additionally wrote the script for the upcoming film Spaceman, a Netflix-helmed sci-fi drama film that will star Adam Sandler and Carey Mulligan. Beyond Goldman and Day, a number of production heads at Searchlight will also be overseeing pre-production on the film.
No theatrical release date for In the Blink of an Eye has been set. Check out Collider's interview with Andrew Stanton about Finding Dory here.