It’s a great question: Why haven’t we heard news about The Girl Who Played With Fire?
David Fincher’s English-language adaptation of Stieg Larsson’s The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo seemed to kick-start a new trilogy, this one with Rooney Mara and Daniel Craig in the key lead roles. Tattoo banked $233 million worldwide, which is very good (but not enough to guarantee a sequel). And the director has expressed interest in coming back for at least the second chapter in this trilogy.
So what’s the hold up?
THR is gently pointing its finger at Craig, who the trade says “want(s) a pay raise, not a cut, in the wake of Skyfall grossing $1 billion worldwide.” Makes sense, only Sony seems to sense a ceiling to the amount of money these Larsson adaptation can make and is looking to reduce costs, not increase them. As a result, Craig’s character in the movie – journalist Mikael Blomkvist – might be erased from screenwriter Steven Zaillian’s treatment of the sequel.
Of course, this is possible given the fact that Mara’s character, Lisbeth Salander, is the greater focus of Played with Fire, though Blomkvist plays an important part of the narrative, and it would be awkward if Craig suddenly were removed from the action. At the same time, Mara’s a bigger star now than she was when Dragon Tattoo opened in 2011. She earned an Oscar nomination for her performance as Lisbeth, and she’s probably capable of carrying the sequel. So while Fincher’s name recently has been attached to an adaptation of Gillian Flynn’s best seller Gone Girl, sources say the director still wants to make Played With Fire, and this story’s far from over.
