EXCLUSIVE: What has happened with Sony Pictures’ plans to mount an exciting new biopic of Cleopatra, with Angelina Jolie attached as the Egyptian queen, based on Stacy Schiff’s bestselling book Cleopatra: A Life? I’m told the director conversation right now is with David Fincher, who just got a Best Director Oscar nomination working with Cleopatra producer Scott Rudin, and who is working with Rudin on the Stieg Larsson novel adaptation The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, also at Sony Pictures.
You’ll recall last October that Deadline revealed James Cameron’s keen interest in directing a PG-13 3D version of the movie with a Brian Helgeland script, until 20th Century Fox stepped up and got him to commit instead to two Avatar sequels. After that, speculation centered around Paul Greengrass, who wound up instead directing his own script, Memphis, about the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., for Universal, also with Rudin producing.
It’s not surprising that the top directors in town are after this gig. As Rudin has described it, this is the first telling of the Cleopatra story from a woman’s perspective. Instead of simply being a seductress, as she was portrayed by Elizabeth Taylor in the 1963 Joseph L. Mankiewicz-directed film, Cleopatra is also a shrewd politician, strategist and warrior, with sexual charisma to spare. The feeling is the role is a perfect fit for Jolie, who might be the only actress right now with the box office might to get such a large film financed. Jolie is very particular about the directors she works with. This would be her first film with Fincher.
I’m told that the Fincher conversation might come down to timing. Sony Pictures wants to get this film under way soon. There are three bestsellers in Larsson’s The Millennium Trilogy, and Dragon Tattoo scribe Steve Zaillian is already scripting the second book, The Girl Who Played With Fire. Fincher is expected to return. He is also attached to Disney’s 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea: Captain Nemo. There are a lot of conversations going on about this film, including setting a new writer, and whether Cleopatra will be in 3D without Cameron. The studio would not comment on the Fincher conversations, but I’m persuaded it is more likely than not to happen.
Angelina Jolie as Cleopatra? A 3D version? Seriously?
Please stop feeding this beast…
Still waiting on Angelina to make a good film. She’s become the Jennifer Connelly of feature films… if she’s in it, you know it’s a stinker.
obviously the both of you (and many on this board) have never taken an acting class nor understand the craft of acting. I know for a fact, taking an acting class helps the writer and director in their craft. Please people, before you slam writer, actors or directors, think about it… have you done said craft at the level we’re talking about? If so, then your opinion is valid. If not, then… wisely, humbly keep your comments about someone’s “laughable talents” to yourself. I’ve said my peace. thank you.
Lol “I’ve said my peace” LoL
I’m sure it is safe to say people of color from around the world have had more than enough Eurocentric history, myths and all.
I didn’t waste my time or money on Stacy Schiff’s white-woman’s myth and I certainly won’t be wasting any on this ridiculous Hollywood flop either. Black people have NEVER bought into this silly myth.
Ebony 2002
“Here’s where the scholars seem to agree: Cleopatra was the last in a line of Ptolemies–Macedonian Greeks–who ruled Egypt from the death of Alexander the Great in 305 B.C. until Anthony’s defeat in the battle of Actium in 31 B.C.
The Ptolemies, as was the custom, were an incestuous, intermarrying breed (they were concerned about preserving the royal bloodline). But they took their pleasure with the courtiers and concubines who filled their palaces. Many of the children born of these assignations were bestowed a place in the royal lineage, despite their dubious–and unspoken–parentage.
Many (scholars) believe that Cleopatra’s father was the product of such a union–his mother may have been a concubine from Nubia or Alexandria.
Lending credence to this theory is the fact that Cleopatra’s bonds to the people of Egypt was far greater than those of her Ptolemic ancestors, who aligned themselves culturally and linguistically with Greece.”
To the Romans, Cleopatra VII was exotic. She spoke the language of the Egyptian people (unlike the Ptolemies) and politically she aligned herself with them.
Interestingly, the only other woman in ancient Egyptian history who come near Cleopatra in prominence are Queen Nefertiti (wife of Akhenaten), Queen Nefertari (wife of Ramsey II), and Queen Hatshepsut (wife of a Thutmose II). These were all strong, accomplished women–in the Egyptian tradition. They were not Greek women.
My problem with it is that it’s revisionist history and it’s happenened too many times where the “African” part of something has been erased to lessen the contributions of our ancestors.
There was no denying what the people of that time looked like. The noses of the Sphinx in Egypt were destroyed because they weren’t sharp and pointy and looked too African, even though Egypt is CLEARLY in Africa!
If it has to do with being savages or anything bad, that’s all us. But when it comes to beauty of people and national treasures then they want all the credit.
Do I care about Angelina? no. But Hollywood needs to cut the crap OR make it go both ways.
Let’s do a movie about Thomas Jefferson played by Don Cheadle.
Or let’s do a Marilyn Monroe biopic staring Taraji P. Henson.
You will never see that shit.
If you’ve ever been to Africa you’d know that “black people” are sub Saharan meaning they live below the Sahara Desert. North Africans look Middle Eastern. Cleopatra was not “black”. This is fact. There are tons of amazing black people in history, Egyptians are not black though.
You don’t know what you are talking about. First, has it ever occurred to you that Cleopatra VII lived in ancient Egypt, not in modern-day Egypt.
Second, many scholars believe that Cleopatra’s paternal grandmother was a concubine from either Nubia or Alexandria. (Today, Nubia is now part of southern Egypt and northern Sudan. To the Greeks, Nubians were Ethiopians.)
Third, where on earth did you get the notion that “black Africans are sub-Saharan”? Sub-Saharan Africa is an imprecise term that “can leave the mistaken impression that there are not indigenous Black populations in North Africa. Furthermore, the Sahara cuts across countries such as Mauritania, Mali, Niger, Chad, and South Sudan, leaving some parts of them in North Africa and some in sub-Saharan Africa.”
Furthermore, the term “sub-Saharan” is nothing more than a racist cloak for “primitive.”
Link to quote:
http://wysinger.homestead.com/nubians.html
With David Fincher’s directing and amazing camera work in all of his films, I don’t think 3D would be necessary.
it’s about time fincher does a re-make of something.
Should have been a sequel to Blade Runner.
Tell me that doesn’t sound bad-a$$…
No one bothered to give McG a call?
thank you for this comment, a chuckle here and there brightens up the day.
Kathryn Bigelow should be directing this movie. But she’s not even being considered which makes no sense. Amy Pascal is not a man. Angelina Jolie is not a man. Scott Rudin is a terrible man. Cleopatra was not a man. And yet only men are being considered to direct this movie. Can someone explain why this is the case?
Exactly – “this is the first telling of the Cleopatra story from a woman’s perspective” – so, why isn’t a female director even considered?
and why is a white women being considered for this role?
Because Cleopatra was white, perhaps? Duh!
Cleopatra was not “white” – Arabic or Nilotic (i.e. North African) or perhaps of some other Semitic blend, but white? As in European? She’s from Egypt, which, last I checked in in Africa…
I would say you could pull this movie off with an unknown or lessen known actress, star driven bio-pics are highly uninteresting…
If Fincher rolls into the sequel to the Larsson trilogy, that’s perhaps not good…
Cameron should have done this, not AVATAR sequels…
Yup she sure was white. About as white as Barack Obama and Lenny Kravitz.
Again? Really? Cleo was a Ptolemy. They were Macedonian. So, yes, as in southeastern European. And they had a habit of intermarrying/ in-breeding – it’s not like they married the local population. She may not look like Angie or Liz Taylor, but that’s the pop image/icon that’s taken over. It is what it is.
As Cleopatra was, as the very least a mix of two racial groups, why not get a racially mixed actress to play her? While I for one am a big fan of Angelina’s, the fact that Hollywood seems incapable of thinking outside the box on actors and actresses (need I remind anyone of “The Tourist” or “Just Go With It”) is one of its biggest drawbacks right now. Some fresh (and dare I say more diverse) faces on the screen can only help the industry — especially as it has become increasingly dependent on international audiences, and their money, to keep it afloat!
Because Cleopatra was ethnically Greek, as a member of the Ptolemy line. Gah . . . know your history before you pull the race card.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cleopatra
You are my new hero.
Well, let’s play the scholarly card. Although much still remains unknown about Cleopatra, there is a good deal of information about her that suggests she was almost certainly a mixed-race Egyptian. A growing number of modern-day scholars now believe that Cleopatra’s father (Ptolemy XII) was the product of a union with a concubine from Nubia or Alexandria.
Such unions are known to have been common within the Ptolemies’ palaces, and this would certainly explain the Romans’ perception of Cleopatra as exotic and their fascination with her. Furthermore, this would also explain Cleopatra’s uncharacteristically strong bond with her Egyptian subjects in contrast with her noticeably weak cultural bond with her Greeks ancestry.
A talented filmmaker-regardless of gender-should be helming this movie, Bigelow or not.
Great! Maybe Brad will agree to appear as Marc Anthony.
I’m all for David Fincher, but the whole big deal is that this is the first time it’s told from a woman’s perspective….so why not a WOMAN director?! Jeez
I was hoping Steven Spielberg or Martin Scorsese will direct Cleopatra, I don’t know how Fincher who is famous for his 100 takes on one scene will mesh with Jolie who has Clint Eastwood’s attitude that you can capture the raw emotions with the first or second take.
Just as an (nerdy) FYI: The longer version of the Liz Taylor Cleopatra depicts her quite a bit as a politician. In fact, the original theatrical release was cut down to be exactly nothing more than two love stories. The original intentions go way beyond that.
I hear, some group is still working on getting the ‘old’ Cleopatra back to be the movie it was planned to be.
The long version, as well as especially the two hour documentary about the Making Of, are well worth watching. To this day, and by far, the most expensive movie ever made. In many ways, it shows.
And the 1934 DeMille version with Claudette Colbert also depicted her as a shrewd, intelligent leader surrounded by weaker men. Dontcha just love how everyone thinks they’re doing something new when in fact it’s all been done before?
I agree. the longer version was a good film.Its a shame the studios don’t know what their doing much of the time
Agreed. And btw, cleopatra wasn’t ethnically Egyptian. She was Macedonian. She was of the Ptolemy line of Pharaohs who were Macedonians serving in Alexander the Great’s army. In the chaos that ensued after Alex’s death, the Ptolemies ended up with Egypt, making themselves Pharaohs. So yeah, given that Angelina Jolie has already played a Macedonian woman convincingly (see her turn as Alexander the Great’s mother in “Alexander”) I think it’s not too far of a stretch for her to play Cleopatra. End rant.
David Fincher is great, but prepare for a thousand takes Angelina
Considering Brad Pitt has been friends with Fincher for over 15 years and worked with him in 2007 on The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and Jolie was on the set a lot during filming, so I think Jolie is well aware of Fincher’s directing style and his propensity for asking an actor to repeat a scene a few million times.
David Fincher possibly directing Cleopatra is the first time I can actually work up any interest for this project. At least he’ll keep it from degrading into the usual campy take on Cleopatra’s history.
As for Kathryn Bigelow – meh. I don’t think they should hire a woman just to make this the all distaff version of Cleopatra. Having said that – Bigelow would be miles better than Nora Ephron. Just kidding about Ephron…I hope.
no way Fincher is doing this. After he recovers from GWTDT he’s going to go into immediate prep on 20,000 leagues.
Riddly Scott should direct this, if anyone at all.
Can we all agree that Ridley Scott and David Fincher have a competition to see who can attach themselves to the most “never gonna happen” projects?
Also, I can’t see Fincher ever making a 3D movie. It just wouldn’t fit his approach to filmmaking.
Yeah, I gotta say…why not a WOMAN DIRECTOR??
Yeah would be good BUT how many female directors out there have experience working on big budget event movies? I can only think of a few
There have been plenty of male directors who’ve been attached to big budget films without experience. It’s a growing trend to find a “greener” director and give “him” more money to make big things happen on screen. So… lend that opportunity to a woman. Why not? Especially for this film…
Seriously!
Meh.
Yes for Steven Spielberg or wolfgang Peterson,the director of Troy. He is good for epic films like Cleo.
Why not Darren Aronofsky to direct this film? I think he’d be the best choice by far.
I read the book…Russell Crowe as Julius Caesar, or, they could go with someone like Mark Strong. James Franco as Octavian – high strung, young, insecure about his position but, as a co-ruler along with Mark Antony, must be equal in age with whoever plays Antony – lustful, and entirely taken with Cleopatra’s acceptance as a Living Goddess by her people. She seduced both men with extravagance and raised them as living gods in her country. That was their downfall in Rome.
I agree why isn’t a WOMAN DIRECTOR being considered for a WOMAN’S PERSPECTIVE. Sheesh. It’s still a BOYS CLUB.
Ever considered that there simply aren’t many female filmmakers out there in the first place to choose from. And no one from the studio even said that they weren’t considering a female director so why does everyone keep asking ‘why NOT a female director?’
There are a ton of female filmmakers to choose from. Just because they don’t come up in articles like this doesn’t mean they’re not out there and making (or having the ability to make) great films.
Angelina should direct it herself she is a director now so what’s the problem with her directing Cleopatra? She should demand to direct it all she needs is an expert dp and a great upm and she’d be able to do it. Go for it Angie tell Rudin you are the only one to call the shots on this. If Cleo could rule an empire then you can rule a film set.
I’m sure that would be a dream for all attached so far. Hopefully they can make it happen, I think Fincher would be perfect because they need a respectable but heavyweight director to do this job. Plus with his collaborating with Pitt so many times I’m sure he and Jolie would like to work together. Paul Greengrass just isn’t the guy IMO- this needs a Fincher or a Spielberg, someone who can handle the “big stage”. The whole 3D aspect to this project is still one big WTF to me, though. No need for that.
Wow. Jolie looks nowhere near Egyptian and a female director with an Academy Award is not being considered for this movie. Can it be any more offensive?
FYI: Cleopatra was Greek ethnically.
And, the Grecians of 50 B.C. ethnically, look like Angelina Jolie? No way.
Really? Show me how a Greek wfrom that time look like! Troll.
Who talked about Jolie? I said CLEO WAS GREEK.
Cleopatra was not white? Good grief.
As a Ptolemy, Cleopatra was Macedonian, She was not African
i love how everyone was up in arms about will smith’s kid playing Annie, yet it’s ok for angelina jolie (and i’m a huge fan, mind you) to play the great AFRICAN queen in history. gotta love hollywood! one day, maybe 2098, this story will be told accurately. until, i’ll enjoy this very special town…
Cleopatra was Greek. Egypt was ruled by the Ptolemy dynasty after Alexander the Great.
Cleopatra was of Macedonian or Greek descent, not African. The Macedonians conquered Egypt. So, if you want historical accuracy, are you saying you want… Jennifer Aniston? LOL.
Cleopatra was Greek not African
Very true. Well I guess it’s a slight progression from Elizabeth Taylor, granted it’s almost 50 years later! The public is getting bored with Angelina Jolie. Soon enough Hollywood will wake up to that…
Agreed Chelsea. Maybe this will be the project to clue Hollywood in.
Hollywood only sees the returns on movies and Jolie is still the only actress right now that has the global appeal, look at the Tourist that did not do so well here in America have done over $200m overseas, so what exactly will Hollywood get clued in to, you on the other hand need to get with the program, The Jolie rules for now.
Meh.
To Hollywood:
Depp was also in The Tourist. He too is an international star. However when you add marketing along with production costs, The Tourist has finally broke even.
Now if the production budget for Cleopatra is say 80 million, (HA!)then I say by all means, cast Jolie and go for it.
This film is risk, even with Jolie starring.
And maybe one day you’ll crack open a history book before making an ass of yourself about “accuracy” in movies.
As others have correctly stated, Cleopatra was of Macedonian/Greek descent, not African.
Anyone who calls himself “bigus dickus” should leave the profanity and jerk comments to someone who can select a better and more “accurate” name.
who cares about his name. he was right and you just trolling on his name.
Troll.
And now expanding his sphere of ignorance from history to film, i luv this biz fails to recognize the Life of Bwian reference from Bigus Dickus.
I’d quit now.
The ignorance of some of you white-washed brain-washed imbeciles always amaze me!! How the heck was Cleopatra white? I guess your sources came from the same twisted lying historians/barbarians who have tried their best to eliminate black people from all greatness that has been historically achieved by them including building empires like Egypt when whites were still in the dark ages.
Racist. Go read some books.
African? You are a moron.
Melina Kanakaredes for Cleo? Damn, she has no BO draw.
Howzabout Nia Vardalos? Cleopatra’s Big Fat Greco-Roman Wedding. LOL!
wow- why don’t you get a clue and not expose your ignorance? The AFRICAN Queen was not black, just like whites ruled in South Africa for a long time, it does not make them black just because they were AFRICAN leaders, sheesh!
she was not African- She was a Ptolemy, Cleopatra was Macedonian ( Greek ) . do research before you make those blind statements
Angelina Jolie is an amazing actress, but when is a woman of color going to play this historical woman of color? You cannot honestly tell me that everyone is blind to the fact that Cleopatra was not pale. And it does not matter who directs it, as long as they are a good director and do the movie justice.
Go Wikipedia – Type Cleopatra. So much for Angie being “pale”. Maybe you are racist.
Once again: Cleo = Macedonian. Macedonia = southeastern Europe, by Greece.
Not African, not a “historical woman of color”. If she was, I would agree with you 100%!