Fincher plunging 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea?

In recent weeks we heard that Disney had sunk McG’s vision for 20,000 LEAGUES UNDER THE SEA which had Will Smith cast as his dream Captain Nemo, but it appears the project is still afloat as another director is already lined up to set sail. Alright sorry, no more nautical puns.

David Fincher is in talks with Disney to helm the adventure, with Scott Z. Burns of THE BOURNE ULTIMATUM set to pen the tale. As it turns out Fincher actually approached Disney about the project, which implies he’s got a pretty good idea what he wants to do with it.

The McG version was actually axed in part because the vision was “too dark” and naturally, switching from the director of CHARLIE’S ANGELS to the director of SE7EN will surely bring a much lighter tone to the film.

In fact, the Fincher/Burns pitch is being described as “in the vein of STAR WARS or THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK.” Uh huh. But yeah, now that this project has shed McG in favor of Fincher, who can rarely do wrong in my eyes, it’s actually become one to watch. Just no more Will Smith fantasy casting OK?