Deadline has revealed that director Kenny Oretega (of THIS IS IT) will be taking on the ambitious directorial role for a feature length film based on Michael Jackson’s THRILLER. It is also rumoured that THE HANGOVER’S Jeremy Garelick is attached to write the project.
With the creator of THE HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL on board, it seems unlikely that the film with have the grindhouse flair of the 1983 14 minute THRILLER epic. Isn’t the fact that THRILLER is only 14 minutes long what gives it the haunting presence it still holds today? Every year there is at least one giant flash-mob dedicated to the song, in fact, there was one in San Diego last week where all the 400 demi-zombies rocked the Del Mar county fair. A feature film just seems superfluous, it seems unlikely that it will preserve the integrity of the music video.
GK films own the rights to shoot THRILLER and have estimated that it will run at a cost of $50 million. GK told Deadline that the film would “expand the films folklore” (either that or destroy its legacy-lets just hope they don’t cast Zac Efron to play Michael.)
The sad irony of all this is, had Michael lived, the royalities from the film would have provided the debt bailout he was hoping for with the 02 arena tours.
No CGI zombies please Ortega.
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