Could the remake of 'My Fair Lady' be in trouble? It was nearly nine months ago that 'Slumdog Millionaire' director Danny Boyle was supposedly at the helm of the picture, which Keira Knightley has been attached to for some time. Then that fell through, and now, per Screenrush, there is word that 'Atonement' and 'Pride & Prejudice' director Joe Wright, after being buttonholed at the London Film Festival, has acknowledged he isn't directing the remake, either.The original 1964 film is considered a classic -- an icon of movie musicals during the era in which they were last considered hip. Directed by George Cukor and produced by Jack Warner, 'My Fair Lady' captured eight Oscars, including Best Picture. Some purists argue that remaking 'My Fair Lady,' based on the musical play by Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe-itself based on G.B. Shaw's play 'Pygmalion,' would be as fatal an error as remaking 'Gone With the Wind.'
Still, some pieces remain in place for Columbia Pictures to plow ahead. The Emma Thompson-penned screenplay is rumored solid enough to catapult Knightley into the category of stardom enjoyed by Audrey Hepburn, who played Cockney flower girl Eliza Doolittle in the '64 original. Casting of the key role of Henry Higgins, meanwhile, remains under wraps.
Interestingly, Screenrush reported Wright as saying he was never directing the remake to begin with, only considering it. Nor did Wright elaborate on what made him decide to pass or who else might consider shooting the picture. Then there's fear of lacking a "wow" factor: While 'Chicago,' the film musical based on the Broadway tuner, won the 2002 Oscar for Best Picture, the headlong rush back to movie musicals hasn't really played out as planned. Despite Meryl Streep singing and dancing ABBA-style, 'Mamma Mia!' was not a monster box-office hit and was openly loathed by some critics. Columbia may not, therefore, want to Ascot Gavotte itself into financial oblivion.
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