Warner Bros.’ adaptation of the Stephen King novel The Stand has gone through plenty of ups and downs over the past few years, and it just recently lost its director—again.  Scott Cooper (Out of the Furnace) joins Ben Affleck and David Yates on the list of filmmakers who were at one point attached to tackle the post-apocalyptic tale but bowed out for one reason or another.  It’s a difficult adaptation for sure, but Warner Bros. is still aiming high for the property, as Captain Phillips helmer Paul Greengrass currently tops the list of candidates the studio is keen on taking over the project.  Hit the jump for more.

captain-phillips-paul-greengrass
Image via Columbia Pictures

The folks over at Badass Digest report that Greengrass is the top choice on a list of potential replacement candidates to helm The Stand.  He would certainly be an interesting fit for the property, as he has remained firmly in grounded, real-world stories with his previous films.  There’s no telling whether he’d be interested or not, and he’s a filmmaker who very much sticks to his guns.  He hasn’t yet settled on his next project, but he flirted with DreamWorks’ Trial of the Chicago 7 before bowing out when the studio wouldn’t raise the budget.

Creative issues also led to Cooper's exit from The Stand, as he was high on an R-rated adaptation but WB wants the film to be PG-13.  Moreover, the studio apparently can't decide whether the adaptation should be one, two, or three films, which obviously made it difficult on Cooper since he was trying to pen the script.

If Greengrass doesn’t accept the gig, THR adds that WB is also mulling over Cary Fukunaga (Jane Eyre), Denis Villeneuve (Prisoners), and Daniel Espinosa (Safe House) as other possible candidates.  Clearly the studio is still keen on making The Stand happen.  Hopefully we hear more soon.

the-stand-book-cover