20 Incredible Facts You Didn't Know About 2020's Biggest Movies
11. It Was Almost Made By Steven Spielberg Over A Decade Earlier - The Trial Of The Chicago 7
The Trial of the Chicago 7 finally made it to screens this year as written and directed by Aaron Sorkin and starring a stellar ensemble cast.
But the film had actually been in development for more than a decade at the behest of Steven Spielberg, who first mentioned the project to Sorkin in 2006.
By 2007, Sorkin had written a script and Sacha Baron Cohen had already been cast as Abbie Hoffman, while Will Smith was originally approached to play Bobby Seale (eventually played by Yahya Abdul-Mateen II), and Heath Ledger - who reportedly passed away the day before he was supposed to meet Spielberg - to play Tom Hayden (which later went to Eddie Redmayne).
The 2007-2008 Writers Guild of America strike ended up derailing plans, however, after which both Ben Stiller and Paul Greengrass were considered to direct the film.
The project then sat dormant until 2018, when Sorkin was hired to direct following the release of his widely praised directorial debut Molly's Game.