Bummer! David Mamet’s proposed re-imagining of The Diary of Anne Frank has been rejected by Disney and put into turnaround, says the Wrap. Since the pairing of filmmaker and material here seemed like such a terrific match, you’re probably wondering what went wrong. According to those involved, the studio dumped the project when it was deemed “too dark.†Also, it was no longer, technically, about Anne Frank.
Reports Sharon Waxman:
The screenplay is not a retelling of the famous Holocaust drama taken from the diaries of Frank, but about a contemporary Jewish girl who goes to Israel and learns about the traumas of suicide bombing […] “It’s very intense, and dark and scary,†says an executive. “It’s not a film version of The Diary of Anne Frank. The story evolved into something more intense.â€
The good news is, other studios are now free to bid on Mamet’s gritty, Anne Frank–less Diary, so we can’t think of a single reason this thing shouldn’t be greenlit somewhere by the weekend.
Mamet’s Anne Frank in Turnaround from Disney [Wrap via Movieline]