‘Bad Teacher’ director, Jake Kasdan, set to helm ‘Jumanji’ reboot
The Sony Pictures reboot of Jumanji finally has a director, according to a Jan. 14 report on Deadline. Bad Teacher director Jake Kasdan will helm the project.
“Kasdan’s credits include the Sony sleeper comedy hit Bad Teacher, as well as Sex Tape, Freaks and Geeks, New Girl and The Grinder,” Deadline summarizes.
Matt Tolmach is producing a script by Scott Rosenberg and Jeff Pinkner (The Amazing Spider-Man 2).
Their script is based on draft by original writers, Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers, keeping the premise of the Caldecott Medal-winning adventure book by Chris Van Allsburg.
“Tolmach has been the major driver in getting it to the start line and Bill Teitler is also producing and Ted Field and Mike Weber will be exec producers. Van Allsburg will also be executive producer,” Deadline said.
Robin Williams headlined the 1995 film which grossed $260 million globally. That story centered on a young boy who was sucked into the board game years earlier, only to emerge later when two kids (Kirsten Dunst, Bradley Pierce) in then-present day 1995. They played the game and freed him from the jungle in which he was trapped.
The film also starred Bonnie Hunt, David Alan Grier, Jonathan Hyde (in two roles) and Bebe Neuwirth.
Expect casting news and a production start soon as the new Jumanji is set for Christmas 2016.
[…] during next summer’s movie schedule. News of the release date comes just after the studio hired Jake Kasdan to direct the Jumanji reboot with Matt Tolmach producing. The script was written by Scott Rosenberg and Jeff Pinkner, based on […]