Academy Award winning screenwriter Stephen Gaghan, the man behind TRAFFIC (2000), HAVOC (2005), RULES OF ENGAGEMENT (2000) and M. Night Shyamalan’s upcoming AFTER EARTH, is set to direct CANDY STORE for Lionsgate. Gaghan previously directed ABANDON (2002) and SYRIANA (2005). CANDY STORE will be a crime thriller and Denzel Washington and Brad Pitt are in very early talks to star. The film sees a deep-cover agent begin work as a beat cop in Brooklyn, but soon finds that a global organization he has been fighting is operating in his new backyard.
Gaghan puts a lot of personality into his scripts and is often able to juggle multiple characters and complex plots. Sometimes it works better than others as the adaptations of his screenplays are often helmed by directors that can’t balance the two. SYRIANA was very interesting so I’m sure Gaghan has a better grasp on his own scripts than others.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
