Seriously, when do Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci find time to sleep?
Just last week, the Transformers and Star Trek franchise alums (and co-creators / “consulting producers” for Fringe) signed on to rewrite the Amazing Spider-Man sequel. Reports are now in that the pair recently did a revamping of the script for the impending Tom Cruise vehicle All You Need Is Kill – and are helping to develop and produce Universal’s reboots of both The Mummy and Van Helsing franchises (the latter has Cruise attached to star).
According to the official press release from Universal Pictures, Kurtzman and Orci are slated to “develop and produce” the Mummy reboot (with Darkest Hour and Prometheus co-writer Jon Spaihts penning the script), as well as the tentatively writer-less Van Hesling project. Besides being attached as headliner, Cruise is also set to co-produce the latter.
Sean Daniel, who co-produced the previous Mummy trilogy (along with its spinoff, The Scorpion King), will also return for the… uh, second recent rebooting of the series. Spaihts, for what it’s worth, plans to abandon the Indiana Jones-style serial adventure style of the Brendan Fraser Mummy flicks and instead “go back to the franchise’s roots in dark, scary source material.”
There’s no word yet on how exactly Kurtzman and Orci (and whichever fellow writer they end up collaborating with) plan to revamp the Van Helsing series – which was also rebooted not so long ago, by the same filmmaker behind the original Mummy reboot, Stephen Sommers. However, it stands to reason that they too aim to deliver something firmly rooted in the supernatural horror genre – rather than the effects-driven blockbuster territory occupied by the 2004 Hugh Jackman vehicle.
As for All You Need Is Kill: an earlier script draft of the Japanese sci-fi novel adaptation was co-penned by Dante Harper (Hansel and Gretel Witch Hunters) and Joby Harold (Awake). Bourne Identity and Jumper director Doug Liman (see below) is expected to commence with production on the film before the year is out, working alongside Cruise – with Emily Blunt as the female lead.
Bear in mind, all of this is on top of Kurtzman and Orci’s recent commitments, which have included producing both the upcoming heist thriller Now You See Me and the sci-fi literature adaptation Ender’s Game – not to mention, post-production on Kurtzman’s directorial debut, People Like Us, which was completed not too long ago.
That’s all to say: whether you think Kurtzman and Orci are indeed “Hollwood’s Secret Weapons” – or, alternatively, an overrated and overused screenwriting/producing duo – you gotta give them props for sheer work ethic.
We will keep you up-to-date on the status of all the aforementioned Kurtzman/Orci-backed projects as more information is released.
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