There used to be a time when anything that had
M. Night Shyamalan's name attached to it was considered worth looking forward to. But after several box-office flops and a bunch of unwarranted twist endings later, M.Night's name is now generally followed by unanimous eyeball rolling coupled with simultaneous groans that spell "Aww man not this guy again..." from audiences. Nevertheless, the man seems to know his way around Hollywood.
THR say he is scheduled to direct the original sci-fi project '
One Thousand AE' as a vehicle for Will Smith's son,
Jaden Smith, recently seen in the 'Karate Kid' remake which was the recipient of a good amount of positive reviews. This isn't
the super secret original film he was trying to ship around town in the Summer, and which briefly courted the interest of
Bruce Willis, Bradley Cooper and
Gwyneth Paltrow. Evidently, probably because of his recent output, no studio in town was willing to front up the cash and it's been shelved.
Coincidentally, the script for this flick is being penned by 'Book Of Eli' scribe,
Gary Whitta, who seems to have a liking for all things post-apocalyptic, and it marks the first M. Night movie, not written by the director! According to Heat Vision, Jaden wont be the only Smith involved with 'One Thousand AE' though. The film will be produced by Will Smith's production company, Overbrook. I'm guessing it's a sci-fi project linked to the destruction of Earth and what happens ten centuries later, hence the 'AE'. While Will Smith's name hasn't been mentioned in an actor's position so far, the script does leave room open for a lead adult male, so don't rule out the possibility of having both Smiths play roles.
So, what do you guys think? Can M.Night Shyamalan redeem himself after the horrendous attempt that was
'The Last Airbender'? Will the fact that this isn't his script help the movie pull-though? Give us your opinions below. I gotta' admit the plot sounds pretty interesting, and Will Smith being involved is almost always a good thing, but I'm not holding my breath just yet.