10 Films That Were Stuck In Development Hell For Years

Making movies is a notoriously complex business. It might seem easy on the outside, but there's an extraordinary amount of work and organisation that needs to go into every production. Assembling a huge team involving actors, directors, writers, producers, photographers, and so much more isn't easy, and there's also the question of rights, marketing, funding, and more.

With so much to do and so many possible pitfalls, it's no surprise that some films get stuck in 'development hell' for many years. When this happens, a movie project is forced to a standstill, often passing between different studios, having its script rewritten multiple times, undergoing drastic changes, and making no real progress towards actually coming out in cinemas.

Some of these projects never actually come to fruition. There are movies that have been stuck in development hell for years and years and may never see the light of day. A movie version of The Jetsons, for example, has been touted for decades, and sequels like Austin Powers 4 are said to be in the works but may never actually happen. Fortunately, some movies do manage to find a way out of development hell, and they often turn out to be worth the wait.

Roald Dahl finished writing Charlie and the Chocolate Factory way back in 1964. It didn't take long for a film adaptation to come out, but the English author was very unhappy with 1971's Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory.

After such a sour experience, Dahl took a dim view of film adaptations in general and refused many deals. In 1991, just a year after the author died, Warner Bros. got in touch with his estate with a view to buying the rights for a new Charlie film.

Seven years later, an agreement was reached, but the movie would have to wait another while to hit cinemas. A few directors, including Martin Scorsese, came and went from the project, and the list of actors considered for the part of Willy Wonka is simply incredible. Everyone from Will Smith to Adam Sandler was up for the job, with the likes of Robert De Niro and Nicolas Cage also on the list.

Eventually, Tim Burton took charge of the project and knew he wanted Johnny Depp in the leading role, although he oddly also had Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson on stand-by in case Depp couldn't do it. Once Burton came on board, production finally picked up some pace and the film was released just two years later.