First it was David Yates. Then it was Ben Affleck. Then it was Scott Cooper. The upcoming feature adaptation of Stephen King's The Stand has been running through directors like tissue paper over the last three years, but now the project hopes to have found a filmmaker who is going to stick around. Josh Boone, the filmmaker behind the upcoming The Fault In Our Stars, is looking to come aboard to try and become the fourth director to try and get The Stand up on the big screen.
According to The Wrap, which first reported the news, Warner Bros. has hired Boone to direct the adaptation as a single, R-rated movie that will adhere closely to the events as written by Stephen King. The site doesn't say who is taking care of the script, though its worth noting that Boone did write the script for his directorial debut, 2012's Stuck In Love:
When we last heard about this big screen version of The Stand - which was last November - the project appeared to be an absolute mess. Reports said that Waner Bros. had no real vision for exactly what they wanted out of the property - from rating to franchise size - but it would appear that the studio has spent the last three months or so figuring that all out (at the time they were also possibly looking at Paul Greengrass to direct). It's worth noting that both Yates and Cooper dropped out of the project due to creative differences, so it will be interesting to track Boone's relationship with WB as he works to get the film made.
First published in 1978, King's post-apocalyptic tale begins as a weaponized flu virus is accidentally released and winds up killing just about every body in America. The story follows a group of survivors as they try to keep living and fight against an evil being known as Randall Flagg. The novel was famously adapted as a television miniseries back in 1994 that starred Gary Sinise and Molly Ringwald.
Boone is obviously still a young filmmaker and working to establish himself in Hollywood, but what do you think of the choice? Is there a filmmaker who you would have preferred to see WB turn to instead? Let us know what you think in the comments below.
