Im of the belief that STATE OF PLAY is one of the best TV shows ever made, so the prospect of a movie version from a director as talented as Kevin Macdonald had me salivating. News comes from
Variety that Brad Pitt has dropped out and that will surely by a massive blow to the project. Pitt has been spearheading STATE OF PLAY since the beginning and word is that unless Universal can find a replacement before November 29th then the rest of the high-profile cast may also go (Edward Norton, Helen Mirren, Rachel McAdams, Jason Bateman and Robin Wright Penn, for the record). The Matthew Michael Carnahan scripted political thriller has undergone several rewrites over the past few months; Tony Gilroy, Peter Morgan and Billy Ray have all taken a pass at the screenplay and perhaps that is the reason for Pitt bailing out on MacDonald so late in the game. Or maybe theres another high-profile, big pay day waiting for Brad somewhere else? The trade rag also reports that Universal may bring a lawsuit to Pitt if the project collapses. Actors drop out of films all the time but the timing is certainly weird on this one. Did you know Brad also exited THE BOURNE IDENTITY before Matt Damon jumped on board? He really knows how to give Universal execs a migraine! source -
variety