Robert Towne arguably wrote one of the greatest scripts of all time when he crafted Chinatown. The Writers Guild Of America ranks it behind only Casablanca and The Godfather and Towne took home the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay, beating out The Conversation, Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore, Day For Night and Harry and Tonto. The writer, who is now 77 years old, continues to work to this day and has now been hired to write a film about one of the most important events of World War II.
Deadline has learned that GK Films, the production company owned by Graham King, has hired Towne to script The Battle Of Britain. Taking place in 1940, the aerial battle saw Royal Air Force going up against the German Luftwaffe over the city of London. In their efforts the British pilots prevented the Nazi invasion of England. In addition to Chinatown, Towne directed four films, including the Colin Farrell movie Ask The Dust, and wrote the scripts for The Firm, Mission: Impossible, The Last Detail and Shampoo (the latter two earning him Oscar nominations). Most recently the screenwriter penned the HBO miniseries Pompeii, which is due out next year.
Speaking about the project, King said "My father lived in London and watched this spectacular dog fight over the city, so bringing this story of endurance and triumph to the big screen means a great deal to me. I am also extremely excited to be joining forces with the iconic Robert Towne who is a master of mixing complex characters and tremendously compelling plots. Robert has a passion for history and a shared love of this particular story."
Not all of Towne's scripts are pure gold (he also has Mission: Impossible II and 1994's Love Affair on his resume, but he is most definitely one of Hollywood's most prized screenwriters. Let's see if he can work his magic again with this new project.
