by Because the gangster film wanted to quickly launch WBD CEO David Zasla
According to the sources of the former editor of The Hollywood Reporter and Puck News reporter Matthew Belloni, one of the projects of Warner Bros. Discovery, awaiting a green light from the studio, is a prequel to “Ocean’s Friends” that was revealed in May.
According to the journalist, Ryan Gosling agreed to play Margot Robbie in the film because they had already worked together on Barbie. Jay Roach (Austin Powers and Meet the Parents) should direct the crime film, and the film company is ready to allocate a large budget for it – much more than Steven Soderbergh’s Ocean’s Friends trilogy or the spin-off “Ocean’s 8”.
However, Warner Bros. Mike de Luca and Pam Abdi first gave the go-ahead to the drama Wise Guys (Mafiosi, Wise Guys), in which Robert de Niro should play two main roles at once. A film about American mafia bosses Frank Costello and Vito Genovese is to be directed by Barry Levinson (Good Morning Vietnam) from a script by Nicholas Pileggi, who worked with Martin Scorsese on Goodfellas and Casino.
Sources point out that few people in the WB were interested in the film with De Niro, as it was not considered a guaranteed success. In addition, the picture does not fit into the current company policy which is trying to cut costs and focus on potential blockbusters that would bring a large amount at the box office.
However, Wise Guys has received the green light and will be on the release schedule before the Ocean’s Friends spin-off, as the studio’s management personally requested this from the head of Warner Bros. Discovery, David Zaslav. He proposed this project to WB even before the change in leadership at the film company, and the heads of the studio failed to convince the boss.
Journalists, as well as some in the film industry, are confident that the early release of the gangster drama into production will be negatively perceived in Hollywood. Even if the film is successful, prioritizing for a studio that has recently canceled a number of releases is strange.
And the producer, with whom the reporter spoke, noticed that such a move puts Warner Bros. executives in an uncomfortable position. including three consultants at once (including the former creative director of Disney Studios), whom Zaslav invited specifically for support.
If I was running a movie studio and my boss brought in three veterans of the film industry to help me do my job, then I would immediately say goodbye to this company.
anonymous producer
Warner Bros. Discovery is actively restructuring and trying to cut $3 billion of its already massive spending to get out of debt. The corporation previously told us about the changes at DC Films, as well as the upcoming launch of a unified online cinema, in connection with which HBO Max began to gradually reduce staff.
