Two Different '20,000 Leagues Under the Sea' Heading to Theaters

After being gone for nearly a week and doing nothing but Rush posts, I'm going to take the time to do a serious post right now.

Disney is taking it's "20,000 Leagues Under The Sea" remake out of docking for another try after, six months after the studio halted production on the $150 million project.

A new director has been found to replace McG in the form of David Fincher ("Fight Club") and a writer in Scott Z. Burns ("The Bourne Ultimatum"), both of whom are currently in negotiations.

According to THR, The project was reportedly being put together as Disney’s new production head, Sean Bailey, settled into his position under recently appointed chairman, Rich Ross.

The $150 million McG version was set to be an origin story for Captain Nemo and apparently a darker tale – one of the problems that led to it being nixed.

The plot for the Fincher/Burns "20,000 Leagues" is being kept under wraps for the time being (as is the budget, which I imagine won’t be as much as $150 million). It’s not clear if this new version will stick to darker territories but the involvement of Fincher certainly suggests it.

THR says that Fincher wanted "to tackle a four-quadrant tentpole movie" for the first time in his career. Even more exciting, apparently the "20,000 Leagues" that Fincher and Burns are whipping up is being described as visually dazzling, much in the same vein as "Star Wars" or "The Empire Strikes Back."

But wait! There's more!

HeatVision reports that 20th Century Fox is planning its own version of the film, to be produced by Ridley Scott and his brother Tony Scott from a screenplay by "Clash of the Titans" co-writer Travis Beacham.

The Scotts have approached Timur Bekmambetov ("Wanted") about directing the project, which will take things in a more sci-fi direction by being set in the future rather than being a period peice (but the story will follow the same structure).

Jules Verne's classic tale, originally published in 1869, is in the public domain - so anyone can adapt it. So don't expect any lawsuits coming out of this...for now.

More news to come! Catch ya' later!
Sources: First Showing, Screen Rant, The Geek Files