It certainly has been busy for Sam Raimi. The embattled director of the Spiderman and Evil Dead film franchises has been involved in a plethora of movie and television projects over the past few days. In case you missed all the breaking news, here is an easy rundown…
Sam Raimi is no stranger to ambitious projects. Heck, if the cult classic Evil Dead series didn’t prove to fans and studios that the man has balls, his addition of the dance numbers in Spiderman 3 certainly cemented that point. Love or hate his films, Raimi’s projects always draw a crowd… and that’s what a number of studios are banking on.
So, here’s a recap of what Sam Raimi has been rumored to be involved with:
- Jack Ryan: Alec Baldwin and Harrison Ford did it well. We won’t speak of Ben Affleck. So, who will Raimi tap as the next Jack Ryan? His potential deal with Paramount Pictures has Raimi working on a revival of the Tom Clancy franchise. Rumors say that the new films would feature a younger Jack Ryan. If this is true, my choice is James McAvoy (minus the Scottish accent).
- Reality Television: This could be seriously badass. Have Raimi construct a show where a number of witless twentysomethings are stuck in a room and forced to deal with their worst fears, as well as each other. I don’t know if this is the plot for ’13’, Raimi’s new reality show that has been picked up by The CW, but it certainly would be fun. The show’s producers (which includes Raimi) plan to cast it like a horror movie, right down to the ‘classic horror setting’. Heck, they even tout that contestants will be ‘knocked off, one by one’. Sounds like Thunderdome… good stuff.
- Comic Movies: No, the next installment of the Spiderman series hasn’t been announced (thankfully). This project sounds infinitely cooler. Raimi will be working with Earthworm Jim creator Douglas TimNapel and Paramount Pictures to bring the graphic novel Monster Zoo to the big screen. This sound like just the type of crazy, random film that Raimi can have fun with. TimNapel’s Monster Zoo is hitting stores this month… so look for a review up on PCZ shortly!
- Epic Books Turned Into a TV Series: If successful, this could be a loooong project for Sam. He will be producing an ABC/Disney television series based on Terry Goodkind’s sprawling Sword of Truth series. The first book, Wizard’s First Rule, will be encompassed in 22 episodes. Multiply that by the eleven volumes in the ongoing Truth series… that’s a lot of TV shows. This could be a marathon project for Raimi. Production of Wizard’s First Rule begins this May.
So, that’s the short list… and these are just the projects that have been announced over the last couple of weeks. What do you want to see Sam Raimi involved in over the coming year? A new Evil Dead movie? A resurrection of Jack of All Trades? Directing The Hobbit?
Give us your thoughts over in our Lounge…