SHANTARAM has long been Johnny Depp’s pet project so it was with great difficulty he had to part ways with director Peter Weir this summer after working with him to develop the film. Reports at the time said Depp and Weir became to disagree considerably over the direction of the film. Many thought the film was in jeopardy but Depp, anxious to keep the film on track, has brought in Mira Nair (VANITY FAIR) to replace Weir and direct the film for Warner Bros. Depp is producing along with Bradd Pitt and his Plan B productions. The actor is looking to make SHANTARAM his next project after wrapping SWEENEY TODD with Tim Burton and filming could begin as early as this fall for a 2008 release. Eric Roth (THE GOOD SHEPHERD) wrote the script about a heroin addict who escapes from prison and goes undercover as a doctor in Bombay. While there he gets involved in counterfeiting, gun-running and smuggling. Depp, as if you weren’t aware, can be seen this summer in PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: AT WORLD’S END and Nair’s next film, THE NAMESAKE, will be released by Fox Searchlight this March.
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