“Happy Feet” director shooting “Justice League”:
“Happy Feet” director George Miller is in talks to bring the superheroes of the “Justice League of America” comic books to the big screen.
I prefer to think of it as “Mad Max” director shooting “Justice League”:
Miller wrote and directed the Mad Max movies starring Mel Gibson (Mad Max, The Road Warrior, and Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome); co-wrote Babe and wrote and directed its sequel; and Lorenzo’s Oil. He also directed The Witches of Eastwick, starring Jack Nicholson, Susan Sarandon, Cher and Michelle Pfeiffer and he directed the fourth segment of Twilight Zone: The Movie, which was hailed as the best in most critical reviews.
There some challenges to overcome:
One thorny issue the production needs to deal with is casting. Warner Bros. is in production on “The Dark Knight,” a sequel to “Batman Begins,” starring Christian Bale, and is in development on another Superman movie with Brandon Routh as Clark Kent/Superman. Those two actors will not reprise their roles for the “League” movie as the studio is intent on keeping all of its superhero movies as separate franchises. “League” also is looked at as a launchpad for other comic book movies.As such, the studio is hoping to cast the movie with lesser-known actors, and an international search is under way.
The smaller names in the movie will help with the second issue facing the production: budget. A “League” movie was long thought impossible simply because the thinking was that any undertaking would break the bank on big-name actors and special effects. On the effects front, media like animation were considered before deciding to stick with live action. Miller’s “League” will be effects-intensive. Some motion capture likely will be used as well.
As you might imagine, anyone who directs both Mad Max and Babe is an interesting fellow — he was a medical doctor before becoming a filmmaker.