Major bummer to report out of tinsel town.
The Hollywood Reporter broke the disappointing news that Black Swan director Darren Aronofsky has backed out of Fox's upcoming Wolverine sequel. The movie was set to focus on Logan's past in Japan, with little or no connection to X-Men Origins: Wolverine aside from Hugh Jackman's return to the lead role. That premise paired with Aronofsky's involvement had us pretty excited for the project. Pending further announcements, we're just gonna slump down in our chairs and dream of what could have been.
Aronofsky cited the prospect of an extended absence from his family as the (perfectly reasonable) deal-killer:
"As I talked more about the film with my collaborators at Fox, who have been totally supportive throughout my work on the movie, it became clear that the production of The Wolverine would keep me out of the country for almost a year,” Aronofsky said in a joint statement with Fox.
“I was not comfortable being away from my family for that length of time. I am sad that I won't be able to see the project through, as it is a terrific script and I was very much looking forward to working with my friend, Hugh Jackman, again,”
Heartbroken as we are, there's still hope. It's a promising concept, and hopefully Aronofsky isn't blowing smoke with his endorsement of Chris McQuarrie's script.
Who would you like to see take the helm on this one?
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Damn… it’s almost as though he’d rather take another crack at winning that Oscar he deserves…
That’s unfortunate — I’m a huge Aronofsky fan — but there are lots of great directors out there. Let’s see who they get next.
That’s very disappointing.
me no likey
Sounds like the right choice to me.
Shame to hear, but I wasn’t sure if he was the right choice to begin with.
Onto the next director!
Fine, I’ll do it.
bummer
I’m putting in my vote for Jimski to direct.
Please don’t let them pick some hack director whom the studio can control. Good script or no, a shitty director can still f*ck it up. I’m really bummed about this, but if a good director gets attached there is still hope.
That’s definitely disappointing. with Aronofsky at the helm, I felt a little more relaxed that too many cooks wouldn’t end up in the kitchen, ya know? But he seems to indicate that the studio was supportive, and it sounds as if the script is solid, so… I don’t have any picks off the top of my head, but I do hope they find someone with a similar vision.
What a puss
<on my knees, arms extended, looking up at the camera> Noooooooo!
Well, poopy. Looks like you made me lie to my wife, Hollywood. I was all excited when my wife and I left BLACK SWAN. I was all like, “This dude’s gonna direct THE WOLVERINE! The one with Hugh Jackman!” Now, I’m a just a stinky liar.
He shall be replaced… with Brett Ratner. S.O.S.
Sad, but I can’t say I’m really all that surprised. =
Julie Taymor
god damn it, arronofsky! again with this
Balls. I knew this was too good to stay true.
Well that sucks. I’m kinda in two minds about the film now, because Aronofsky was a huge plus for me. So his leaving kinda makes me less interested. Yet on the other hand Jackman as Wolvie, McQuarrie’s script and based on the Claremont/Miller miniseries…
There’s a lot still to be liked.
Certainly a bummer, but I certainly don’t think that this spells doom for the movie. Everyone doesn’t want to see a repeat of X-Men Origins: Wolverine, but the problem with that movie wasn’t a directorial one. The problem was that the script was utter gobblygook, and went though (what sounds like) a hatchet job of a rewrite. When we receive news about McQuarrie’s script getting rewritten, that’s when I’ll start to get concerned.
As for replacing Aronofsky, I’m positive that Fox will aim for another high profile and talented director. Between all the directors that they try to tap to direct these X-movies (yes, even Gavin Hood), it’s obvious that they try to aim high and get guys who have great track records.
Terrible news. Was totally expecting this as Aronofsky has a history of attaching himself to projects and backing out. But was hoping it would work out. My interest for the film just went from a 10 to about a 2. Aronofsky is one of the few directors that could have possibly overcome all the factors that made Wolverine Origins what it was. Obviously, you have to wait and see what happens. But my guy tell me to get ready for Wolverine Origins 2.0.
Hopefully this won’t be another X3 where an amazing director is replaced with shitty one.
Hopefully the good news from this is that he will be returning to direct the Robocop remake which he’s been trying to do for what seems like forever now. At least when he left that project it wasn’t his fault but MGM not having any money.
As far as a new director, I hate to say it, but I really don’t care when it comes to the X-Men franchise anymore. I kind of feel that unless Uwe Boll does the next one anyone should be able to do a better job.
I’ll direct it since I already live in Japan. I just hope I can use the same personal trainer Hugh Jackman uses to get ripped for these movies.
Not sure why= but what about Jackman doing a actor/director stunt here?
@comicBOOKchris I totally agree with what you said. The problem with the first Wolverine wasn’t really a directorial one. Sure, there were a couple of shots I didn’t care for, but i thought most of the acting was fine. It was just a horrible, horrible, script. I think the same director and the same cast, with a much better script, could have made a great Wolverine story.
As long as they get somebody competent and pair him with a good action cinematographer, if the script is as good as it seems from the little blurbs we have, the movie will still be good.
@j206 –kinda harsh on Aronofsky aren’t you? Attaching and De-Attaching from projects is Hollywood business as usual for just about every A-List talent. Its shocking anything ever gets made really. Do you have any idea how many directors/Actors were officially attached to what became Batman Begins? Dozens over the course of a decade.