Sometimes watching how Hollywood studios operate is more entertaining than the movies they produce. Case in point: Moneyball. For those of you haven’t been following the chaos surrounding the now-dead adaptation of Michael Lewis’s nonfiction baseball best seller: Steven Soderbergh and Brad Pitt were all set to make this film for Sony Pictures—with a budget of around $57 million—when, just days before shooting started, company co-chair Amy Pascal pulled the plug because of issues with Mr. Soderbegh’s revised script. Ms. Pascal says that the revisions made the film too much like a “dramatic reenactment” and not like the baseball comedy with Brad Pitt that they agreed to, a statement we’re pretty sure is code for, “We wanted to make something more crappy!” We’re tempted to get out the pitchforks and torches for Ms. Pascal, but, considering Warner Brothers, Paramount and Fox all passed on Moneyball as well—Sony was kind enough to let Messrs. Pitt and Soderbergh shop the script around to see if another studio wanted in—it appears that she is far from alone in her poor decision making. If Hollywood doesn’t think it can make money on a moderately budgeted film with international superstar Brad Pitt and directed by an Oscar winner, what can they make money on? Take a look at some of the ridiculous projects being tossed around this week!
Mother’s Curse: Because you didn’t ask for it, here comes Seth Rogen and Barbara Streisand playing a son and mother on a road trip. True story! While, admittedly, this proposed film isn’t actually that close to happening—to quote Mr. Rogen, it’s “one of the many projects I may or may not do in the next fifteen years”—just the simple idea that it could happen strikes us as both hilarious and scary.
Asteroids: We were about to sit here and scoff at the idea of Universal going forward with a big-screen adaptation of the ’80s arcade game that is sure to be light on story and heavy on special effects. Then we remembered that Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen not only exists, but it has already grossed a katrillion billion dollars.
Cloudburst: What is it with Hollywood and road trip comedies? In Cloudburst (terrible title, p.s.), Oscar winners Olympia Dukakis and Brenda Fricker star as a couple who break out of their nursing home and travel to Canada to get married. Think Thelma and Louise but with old ladies making out. This gets past “Go,” but Moneyball doesn’t? Nice industry.
