Spielberg Stops Imagining ‘Harvey’
Director Abandons ‘Harvey’ Remake
Steven Spielberg is a rare movie icon whose catalog of film is known even to those who don’t go see movies. He deserves that status, after a career of directing films that almost always deliver the goods.
But lately he’s become flighty, picking up projects here and there, while dropping others. Spielberg announces Interstellar and Lincoln, and then we don’t hear any details about them. He talks up an Oldboy remake with Will Smith and then dumps the project. Now that he’s also officially abandoned his adaptation of Harvey, I’m wondering: what’s making him so nervous about all these projects? Is it because he feels that he must return with a grand slam after the critical reaction to Crystal Skull?
Spielberg spent half a year developing Harvey, a Mary Chase play about a man and his giant rabbit that was so wonderfully executed by Jimmy Stewart in 1950. But apparently, this is the largest problem in developing the Dreamworks film: casting a leading man has proved an overwhelming challenge.
The first place my mind jumped to (along with many others) was Tom Hanks, who turned the role down because he didn’t want to compete with Stewart. Robert Downey Jr. was in talks with Dreamworks, but ultimately couldn’t settle on a script with Spielberg.
Now, Spielberg is off the film, leaving producers to search for new directing talent. Who do you think would be able to fill these giant shoes and deliver a great film? Let us know in the comments.
Source: Variety
Don't know who could direct/produce "Harvey", but I'd suggest Elijah Wood be cast as Elwood P. Dowd. He's quirky and sweet enough to be able to pull it off, and I'll bet he won't demand the huge salary that Hanks or RDJ would. He's supposedly a dream to work with, too.
You can thank me later for this suggestion.
That's actually a really good idea, I think. Plus it would give Elijah a push to the forefront without the baggage of a huge property on his hands.