Michael Mann and Johnny Depp will make "Public Enemies" for Universal.
Meeting hours before the Hollywood premiere of Depp’s "Sweeney Todd," the director and actor shook hands on a deal that triggers a March 10 start for "Public Enemies" in Chicago.
Drama is set during the great crime wave of 1933-34, when the government’s attempts to stop Depression-era criminal legends such as John Dillilnger, Baby Face Nelson and Pretty Boy Floyd transformed J. Edgar Hoover’s FBI into the country’s first federal police force. Mann wrote the script, based on Bryan Burrough’s 2004 tome.
Depp will play John Dillinger, considered the most notorious gangster of the era. Mann and his Forward Pass will produce with Kevin Misher and his Misher Films. Tribeca’s Jane Rosenthal will be exec producer.
While Mann had been mulling several projects that included a reteam with "Collateral" star Tom Cruise on "Edwin A. Salt" at Columbia, "Public Enemies" gained momentum in the past six weeks, and became a reality when Depp became available after Warner Bros. postponed "Shantaram" due to concerns about script, costs and the prospect of shooting in India with monsoon season approaching.
Depp and Mann should make a very cool team for this gangster pic--given each other's skill level--This is gonna be good.
Das Films and Blumhouse Prod. are teaming on an adaptation of John Marks' novel "Fangland" that is shaping up as a star vehicle for Hilary Swank.
Sriram Das of Das Films and Jason Blum of Blumhouse will produce with Swank, who is in line to play a TV producer who travels to Romania for an interview with a notorious European arms dealer. Turns out, he's a modern-day Dracula .
Marks is a former "60 Minutes" producer, and Mark Wheaton ("The Messengers") turned in a first-draft adaptation of Marks' novel just before the strike.
Tracy Underwood will exec produce.
Das Films is also developing an adaptation of the Paulo Coelho novel "Veronika Decides to Die while Blumhouse is in post-production on "Accidental Husband."
Swank is about to bow opposite Gerard Butler in the Richard LaGravenese-directed "P.S. I Love You."
Swank can be a really great asset with the right material behind her--It will be interesting to see how she does in the Vamped up role. The casting of Dracula is key....
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