New 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea Sets Sail
If giant squids are on your horror-loving monster menus – take heed! Christophe Gans is gearing up to take us on quite the adventure!
From the Press Release:
Bliss Media announced that it will produce and finance 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, which they will also release in China. Christophe Gans (Beauty and the Beast, Silent Hill, Brotherhood of the Wolf) will direct the sci-fi adventure feature, adapted from the Jules Verne novel. Pre-production will commence this fall.
Bliss CEO Wei Han will produce alongside Eskwad’s Richard Grandpierre and Frédéric Doniguian, with Wild Bunch, TF1, and Pathé also on board to co-produce and distribute.
This is the first large-scale, big-screen adaptation of the book since the 1950s. The film, whose script will be co-developed with Bliss Media, will move Verne’s narrative to a Chinese setting, and concept art indicated a fin de siècle, East-meets-West visual aesthetic.
Gans visited different locations in the Shanghai area during the Shanghai International Film Festival, and is hoping to cast two Chinese actors to play lead roles in the movies. At Friday’s conference, director Gans spoke of both his and Jules Verne’s long-standing fascination with China.
Most recently at the Shanghai International Film Festival, Bliss Media announced that they have partnered with Orlando Bloom on the formation of a joint production company, BlissBloom Productions. The new venture’s first project, S.M.A.R.T. Chase: Fire & Earth, will be directed by Julien Seri with Bloom attached to star.
In addition to 20,000 Leagues under the Sea and S.M.A.R.T Chase: Fire and Earth, Bliss is also developing Michael Mann’s Enzo Ferrari, has recently financed and executive produced Pablo Larraín’s Jackie starring Natalie Portman, and acquired the Chinese distribution rights to Mel Gibson’s Hacksaw Ridge starring Andrew Garfield.
The company also owns a stake in Insiders, alongside Wild Bunch and Cine France, and launched the Yoozoo Bliss Film Fund (YZBFF), a $100 million equity fund designed to finance ten international productions and Chinese co-productions over five years.
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