The ongoing saga of the DALLAS feature film has taken another turn today with Fox hiring Betty Thomas to direct a new take. The project came extremely close to going into production a few years ago with a cast that included John Travolta, Luke Wilson, Jennifer Lopez and Shirley MacLaine but director Robert Luketic dropped out. He was replaced with Gurinder Chadha (BEND IT LIKE BECKHAM) and that didn’t go over well with most of the cast. Travolta stayed on but all the other cast members dropped out leaving Chadha to work on her own vision of the film. Whatever vision that was it couldn’t have made either Fox or Travolta very happy because she’s no longer involved in the project and Thomas has been brought in to provide a fresh take to the actor. While other versions of the script have tried to take a more serious approach to the material, Thomas will look to turn the film into a broader comedy. Keep in mind Thomas directed THE BRADY BUNCH MOVIE, which was probably one of the more successful TV-to-movie comedy adaptations. Then again, she also directed I, SPY so… Thomas is working with Pam Brady, who wrote the HOT ROD script before the Lonely Island boys became attached, on a new script. Fox is hoping the new comedy version will a) cost less than a dramatic flick and b) appeal to a younger audience.
The comment section exists to allow readers to discuss the article constructively and respectfully, focused on the topic at hand.
What’s Not Allowed