15 Announced Movies That Are Destined For Development Hell
6. Wicked
Status: An adaptation of the hit musical has been in the works since 2004, and was most recently aiming for a 2016 release...which obviously isn't happening.
Why It's Going To Development Hell: One of the big problems with this movie, even though it should be the easiest thing on Earth to make a film out of, is that the musical's producers have been waiting for Wicked's theatrical earnings to drop, which they haven't all that much, because the thing's so damn successful.
Though Stephen Daldry (Billy Elliot, The Reader) has been attached to direct for a while, we've heard little word on the film over the last year, suggesting there's been a snafu somewhere. It's basically a license to print money, proving that not all projects circling development hell are "problematic" or "difficult" films...at least on the surface.