It seems like all of the major studios are hunting right now for the next big young adult fantasy adventure franchise, and no wonder.
Harry Potter and Twilight, the two most frequently cited examples of the genre, have raked in considerable box office sums, and shown studios that, for YA fantasy at least, sequels and franchises can be more than minor investments.
Disney’s latest initiative? A script recently purchased from Max Landis – Son of Director John Landis. The currently untitled project has few details so far, but Varietytells us it’s going to be about a brother/sister adventure team and their emotional journey. Unlike the other current attempts at a new YA franchise, this script is not an adaptation of an existing work, as far as we know.
Landis has been a small-time scribe for a few years, having penned several minor projects and some TV episodes. Of course, the project getting him attention is the shaky-cam super hero flick Chronicle, which hits theaters next next Friday. The director of Chronicle, Josh Trank, has also gotten a high profile job offer out of it.
Here’s the trailer again, in case you’ve forgotten:
Landis’s new script is one of the first to get picked up by Andrew Panay’s film studio, which Disney currently has a first-look deal with. The only other film we know about in Panay’s stable is Late in the Count, a romantic comedy about baseball.
The untitled project has no director, and has not begun casting. There are no production or release dates yet announced.
