It's been reported that Warner Bros. might lose as much as $150 million on its critically panned PAN, and according to The Wrap, the film's box office failures may have also cost Joe Wright his next directing gig. Insiders tell the site that earlier this month Wright was in negotiations to direct Lionsgate's planned Julius Caesar flick EMPEROR, however those talks ended once PAN bombed at the box office. Apparently the studio is taking the project “back to the drawing board” as they look for a new director.
While Lionsgate declined to comment for the site's report, a representative for Wright declared it “categorically untrue.” Wright wasn't fired from the movie though, since he was never officially hired to direct, but one of the film’s producers did admit there was a meeting and several calls with Wright about him possibly helming EMPEROR.
If what The Wrap is claiming is true, I actually feel kind of bad for Wright, however this wouldn't be the first time a filmmaker was removed from a movie because his previous directorial effort underperformed at the box office, and he does deserve some of the blame for PAN's failures. But with a budget of $150 million, Warner Bros. probably didn't give Wright free rein to do whatever he wanted with the film, and he's still a talented director, so I doubt PAN will be a career-killer for him. Do you think Wright lost out on directing EMPEROR because of PAN?
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