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Barry Levinson's unrealized projects

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The following is a list of unproduced Barry Levinson projects in roughly chronological order. During his long career, American film director Barry Levinson worked on numerous projects that never progressed beyond the pre-production stage under his direction. Some of these fell into development hell, were officially cancelled, or would see life under a different production team.

1970s

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Traps

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In the 1970s, Levinson wrote a treatment for an unproduced film called Traps, about an architect. It was based on a concept he conceived in collaboration with Kent Welton.[1]

1980s

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The Eagle of Broadway

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According to journalist Stephen Rebello, an unproduced screenplay called The Eagle of Broadway was long sought after by Levinson and producer Mark Johnson in the 1980s. It was described as "a melange of fact and fiction".[2] Another iteration, directed by Ivan Passer, had James Cagney starring as gunfighter-turned-NYC sportswriter Bat Masterson, and William Hurt as Damon Runyon.[3]

The Desert Rose

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In 1986, Rob Cohen of Taft-Barish Productions hired Terrence Malick to adapt Larry McMurtry's The Desert Rose into a screenplay for Levinson to direct.[4] In 1987, it was officially reported that Levinson would direct the film.[5]

Dreamer

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Main article: Beyond the Sea (2004 film) § Development

Quiz Show

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Main article: Quiz Show (film) § Production

1990s

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Super Mario Bros.

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In 1990, he planned to direct a Super Mario Bros. film starring Dustin Hoffman and Danny DeVito, but could not after Roland Joffé beat Hoffman to securing the rights and made Super Mario Bros. (1993) without their involvement.[6]

Home Fries

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Main article: Home Fries

On March 9, 1993, Levinson was set to direct and produce Vince Gilligan's script Home Fries, with Mark Johnson producing for Warner Bros., until Dean Parisot replaced Levinson as director.[7]

Assassins

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[8]

Magic Time

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[8]

George Washington

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[9][10][11]

Path to War

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Main article: Path to War

[12]

2000s

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In the Heart of the Sea

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Main article: In the Heart of the Sea (film) § Production

In Harm's Way remake

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[13][14]

Lafayette

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On November 22, 2001,[9][15]

The Colonel and Me

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On May 20, 2003,[16]

The Crash Detectives

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On November 12, 2003,[17]

A View from the Bridge

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In February 2005, Levinson was set to direct the film adaptation of the Arthur Miller play A View from the Bridge, with Andrew Bovell writing the screenplay and Anthony LaPaglia, Frances McDormand, and Scarlett Johansson cast as the leads.[18][19] On January 18, 2011, Levinson was replaced by Robert Connolly as the film's director, with Vera Farmiga and Mia Wasikowska alongside Sam Neill and Sebastian Stan.[20]

Boone's Lick

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On February 8, 2007,[21][22][23]

The Saint TV pilot

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On March 13, 2007, TNT said it was developing a one-hour series based on The Saint to be executive produced by William J. MacDonald and produced by Jorge Zamacona.[24] James Purefoy was announced as the new Simon Templar.[25] Production of the pilot, which was to have been directed by Levinson, did not go ahead.[26]

A Walk in the Woods

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Main article: A Walk in the Woods (film)

[27]

Train

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On August 6, 2008,[28][29]

Babi Yar

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On February 3, 2009, Levinson was set to direct the film adaptation of Anatoly Kuznetsov's nonfiction novel Babi Yar: A Document in the Form of a Novel with Anatoly Fradis' Aurora Entertainment producing the film.[30]

Sixty-Six

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On April 30, 2009,[31][32]

City of Angels

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On June 16, 2009, Levinson was set to direct the film adaptation of the detective musical dramedy City of Angels with Larry Gelbart writing the screenplay based his musical book, Marc Shaiman as music director, Robert Shaye and Michael Lynne's Unique Pictures producing and Warner Bros. Pictures distributing.[33]

2010s

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Brother Jack

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On July 8, 2010, Levinson was set to direct Brother Jack, a biopic about activist Jack Healey, with Kelly Masterson rewriting the script and Columbia Pictures set to produce the film.[34]

Gotti

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Main article: Gotti (2018 film) § Development history

O.K.C.

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On March 2, 2011, Levinson was set to direct O.K.C., a biographical legal drama about the legal defense of Timothy McVeigh, with Clay Wood writing the script and Peter Safran set to produce the film.[35]

Black Mass

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Main article: Black Mass (film) § Development history

Musketeers 3.0 TV series

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On September 2, 2011, Levinson was set to produce Tom Fontana's police procedural series Musketeers 3.0 with Fontana attached as executive produce the series and distributed by The CW.[36]

The Last Hero: A Life of Henry Aaron

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On April 3, 2012, Levinson was set to direct the baseball biopic The Last Hero: A Life of Henry Aaron, with Adam Mazer writing the script, and Mike Tollin, Glenn Rigberg, & Peter Guber set to produce the biopic.[37]

Untitled love story

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On May 21, 2012, Levinson was set to direct Ronald Harwood's historical romance film loosely adapted from Bei La's novel The Cursed Piano, with Mike Medavoy, Edward McGurn, & Raffaella De Laurentiis set to produce the film and Shanghai Film Group financing the production.[38]

Last Men Out miniseries

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On July 29, 2015, Levinson was set to produce Tom Fontana's Vietnam War miniseries Last Men Out with National Geographic set to air, but there was no casting announcement for miniseries.[39]

Gypsy movie musical remake

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Main article: Gypsy (musical) § Remake talks

Revival

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On April 4, 2017, Levinson was set to direct and executive produce Phil Primason's comedy script Revival with Billy Crystal set to executive produce and star in the film.[40]

HBO's Wag the Dog TV series

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On April 27, 2017, Levinson was set to direct and executive produce the television series adaptation of Wag the Dog for HBO with Rajiv Joseph writing and executive producing the series, along with Robert De Niro, Jane Rosenthal, and Barry Welsh producing through Tribeca Productions and Warner Bros. Television.[41]

The Jury Room interactive TV series

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On October 24, 2019, Levinson was set to direct and produce the interactive legal drama series The Jury Room with Fontana attached as executive produce the series with Eko.[42]

2020s

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Sheela

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On February 20, 2020, Levinson was set to direct Nick Yarborough's Sheela, a biopic about Ma Anand Sheela, with Priyanka Chopra set to star and produce with Levinson, Jason Sosnoff, David Permut and distributed by Prime Video.[43]

Francis and the Godfather

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On September 30, 2020, Levinson was set to direct Andrew Farotte's biographical script Francis and the Godfather about the development of The Godfather, with Oscar Isaac and Jake Gyllenhaal starring as Francis Ford Coppola and Robert Evans respectively, and Echo Lake Entertainment's Mike Marcus, Doug Mankoff and Andrew Spaulding are producing with Kevin Turen, Jon Levin and Baltimore Pictures' Jason Sosnoff,[44] In early 2021, Elizabeth Moss and Elle Fanning were set to star as Eleanor Coppola and Ali MacGraw respectively.[45][46]

One Giant Leap miniseries

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On September 1, 2021, it was announced that Levinson would direct the limited television series One Giant Leap about the Apollo 11 mission, to be written and showrun by Stephen Kronish, who would also executive produce the project alongside Thoroughbred Pictures' Jeremy Fox and Howard Stringer, Benjamin Anderson, Kevin Costner, and Phoenix Pictures' Mike Medavoy.[47]

The Missing miniseries

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[48]

Assassination

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David Mamet was initially announced as director of his script Assassination, but Levinson was then announced to take his place in October 2023.[49] Principal photography was initially expected to begin in Vancouver in September 2023.[50] However, the following month it was reported that Levinson was retooling the project.[51]

Offers

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Cortes

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In 1988, Levinson was offered to direct Cortes a historical epic about Hernan Cortes from a Nicholas Kazan screenplay and with Edward R. Pressman producing, but Kazan & Pressman couldn't get the movie funded.[52]

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

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[2]

References

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  1. ^ "TRAPS / Barry Levinson 1970's Unproduced Treatment Script". eBay. Archived from the original on September 13, 2024. Retrieved September 13, 2024.
  2. ^ a b Movieline Staff (November 1, 1992). "Top Ten UNPRODUCED Screenplays". Movieline. Retrieved September 13, 2024.
  3. ^ "Unproduced and Unfinished Films: An Ongoing Film Comment project". Film Comment. No. May-June 2012.
  4. ^ Biskind, Peter (December 1998). "The Runaway Genius". Vanity Fair. Retrieved September 13, 2024.
  5. ^ Trout, William C. (June 13, 1987). "GLIMPSES". United Press International. Retrieved September 15, 2024.
  6. ^ "Super Mario Bros". AFI Catalog. Retrieved 2024-04-27.
  7. ^ Ayscough, Suzan (March 9, 1993). "Levinson, Johnson in on WB 'Fries'". Variety. Retrieved October 25, 2023.
  8. ^ a b Fleming, Michael (November 18, 1997). "Levinson tunes up". Variety. Retrieved August 3, 2024.
  9. ^ a b "Levinson & Lafayette". IGN. November 22, 2001. Retrieved September 13, 2024.
  10. ^ "The Stax Report's ''Five Scribes'' Edition". IGN. April 4, 2002. Retrieved September 13, 2024.
  11. ^ Goldberg, Lesley (November 14, 2012). "NBC Prepping George Washington Drama With Barry Levinson". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved September 13, 2024.
  12. ^ Dempsey, John; Brodesser, Claude (October 18, 1999). "Levinson charges into 'War' for HBO". Variety. Retrieved August 3, 2024.
  13. ^ "Mel Gibson sought by two studios for same role". The Guardian. July 25, 2001. Retrieved August 3, 2024.
  14. ^ Fleming, Michael (October 1, 2001). "Indie engine revs up". Variety. Retrieved August 3, 2024.
  15. ^ "Barry Levinson to direct Lafayette". The Guardian. November 29, 2001. Retrieved September 13, 2024.
  16. ^ Fleming, Michael (May 20, 2003). "WB, Levinson will salute 'The Colonel'". Variety. Retrieved September 2, 2023.
  17. ^ "Producers Book Biblionauts". IGN. November 12, 2003. Retrieved September 13, 2024.
  18. ^ Fleming, Micheal (February 15, 2005). "The bigscreen 'View'". Variety. Retrieved March 17, 2024.
  19. ^ Staff and Agencies (February 16, 2005). "Miller's A View From the Bridge gets big-screen treatment". The Guardian. Retrieved March 17, 2024.
  20. ^ Lodderhose, Diana (January 18, 2011). "Farmiga, Wasikowska join 'Bridge'". Variety. Retrieved March 17, 2024.
  21. ^ "Levinson's Lick". IGN. February 8, 2007. Retrieved September 13, 2024.
  22. ^ "Barry Levinson Directing Boone's Lick". ComingSoon.net. February 8, 2007. Retrieved September 13, 2024.
  23. ^ Kit, Borys (February 23, 2007). "'Lick' sticks for Levinson at Playtone". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved September 13, 2024.
  24. ^ Dempsey, John (March 13, 2007). "TNT, Devil team for 'Leverage'". Variety. Retrieved October 15, 2024.
  25. ^ Bernardin, Marc (December 10, 2007). "Meet the new Saint: James Purefoy". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved October 15, 2024.
  26. ^ Andreeva, Nellie (July 21, 2008). "James Purefoy circles NBC series". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved October 15, 2024.
  27. ^ Kit, Borys (2008-01-29). "Redford, Levinson hit 'Walk' trail". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2023-02-23.
  28. ^ Parker, Cat (August 6, 2008). "Barry Levinson to Steer Train". MovieWeb. Retrieved September 13, 2024.
  29. ^ Zeitchik, Steven (August 7, 2008). "Levinson, scribe take noir 'Train'". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved September 13, 2024.
  30. ^ Swart, Sharon (February 3, 2009). "Levinson to helm 'Babi Yar'". Variety. Retrieved March 16, 2024.
  31. ^ Zeitchik, Steven (April 30, 2009). "Barry Levinson going back to 'Sixty-Six'". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved August 3, 2024.
  32. ^ Evry, Max (April 27, 2022). "Barry Levinson On Why He Can't Get His Final Baltimore Movie Made [Exclusive]". /Film. Retrieved August 3, 2024.
  33. ^ Fleming, Michael (June 16, 2009). "Lynne, Shaye plot 11 pics". Variety. Retrieved October 25, 2023.
  34. ^ Fleming Jr., Michael (July 8, 2010). "Barry Levinson Directs On Big Screen Again, Nick Cassavetes Acts, Jeff Bridges Walks". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved October 25, 2023.
  35. ^ Fleming Jr., Michael (March 2, 2011). "Barry Levinson To Helm 'O.K.C.'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved October 25, 2023.
  36. ^ Andreeva, Nellie (September 2, 2011). "CW Teams With Tom Fontana And Barry Levinson For Rookie Cop Drama". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved October 25, 2023.
  37. ^ Kroll, Justin (April 3, 2012). "Producers call up Hank Aaron biopic". Variety. Retrieved July 25, 2024.
  38. ^ Dave McNary (May 21, 2012). "Barry Levinson To Direct Shanghai Love Story (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved July 25, 2024.
  39. ^ Frielander, Whitney (July 29, 2015). "Nat Geo Developing Vietnam War Limited Series 'Last Men Out'". Variety. Retrieved July 25, 2024.
  40. ^ Petski, Anita (April 4, 2017). "Barry Levinson & Billy Crystal Huddle On Comedy 'Revival'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved October 25, 2023.
  41. ^ Petski, Denise (April 27, 2017). "'Wag The Dog' Comedy Series In Works At HBO". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved October 25, 2023.
  42. ^ Petski, Denise (October 24, 2019). "Barry Levinson Teams With Eko On Live-Action Interactive Drama Series 'The Jury Room'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved July 31, 2024.
  43. ^ Fleming Jr., Michael (February 20, 2020). "Priyanka Chopra To Play '80s Guru & Convicted Bioterrorist Ma Anand Sheela In Barry Levinson-Directed Drama 'Sheela' For Amazon Studios". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved October 25, 2023.
  44. ^ Fleming Jr., Michael (September 30, 2020). "'The Godfather' Making Of Movie: Barry Levinson Taps Oscar Isaac To Play Francis Coppola & Jake Gyllenhaal As Robert Evans". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved October 25, 2023.
  45. ^ D'Alessandro, Anthony (February 21, 2021). "Elisabeth Moss Boards Barry Levinson's Making Of 'The Godfather' Feature". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved July 31, 2024.
  46. ^ Rubin, Rebbecca (March 9, 2021). "Elle Fanning to Play Ali MacGraw in Movie About Making of 'The Godfather'". Variety. Retrieved July 31, 2024.
  47. ^ White, Peter (September 1, 2021). "Barry Levinson To Direct Apollo 11 Limited Series From Kevin Costner, Stephen Kronish & Mike Medavoy". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved June 11, 2024.
  48. ^ Petski, Denise (March 1, 2022). "'The Missing': Barry Levinson To Direct & Executive Produce David E. Kelley's Peacock Series". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved August 3, 2024.
  49. ^ D'Alessandro, Anthony (October 17, 2023). "Barry Levinson Set To Direct Al Pacino Starring, David Mamet-Scripted JFK Thriller 'Assassination'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved October 17, 2023.
  50. ^ Wiseman, Andreas (May 15, 2023). "Al Pacino, Viggo Mortensen, John Travolta, Shia LaBeouf, Rebecca Pidgeon & Courtney Love Set For David Mamet's JFK Thriller 'Assassination' — Cannes Market". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved May 15, 2023.
  51. ^ Cooper, Dan (October 18, 2023). "Al Pacino, Shia LaBeouf to star in new film about the JFK assassination". Film Stories. Retrieved 11 January 2024.
  52. ^ Koch, Neal (July 21, 1991). "Between Screenplay and Screen Stretches the Highway to Oblivion". The New York Times. Retrieved November 22, 2023.
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