“Super 8”
If you’ve been tracking rumors the last few days re the mysterious “Super 8” project, here’s the scoop per THR’s Ace Fernandez and Borys Kit:
What if Stephen King and J.K. Rowling brainstormed an idea together? Just how big would the potential audience be?
Cosmic.
Well, moviemaking heavyweights J.J. Abrams and Steven Spielberg began collaborating on a hush-hush project a year ago called “Super 8” that they concocted from discussions of their own early filmmaking experiences. Despite Bad Robot’s Cheney-level secrecy, bits and pieces about the project (some right, some wrong) started bubbling up last week.
After seeing the teaser trailer:
Abrams has written the original script and will direct the film this fall for a summer 2011 release through Paramount, where Bad Robot resides. Spielberg is producing the project, which will be in the $45 million-$50 million range.
It has nothing to do with “Cloverfield” and will be shot traditionally (i.e. not hand-held). It’s potentially a huge movie for Paramount, despite its midrange budget, which is why it’s got a slot during Paramount’s already crowded 2011 summer slate.
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In terms of tweaking audience appetite for absolutely having to see the movie, Abrams and Spielberg are masters. This quick, visceral and creepy tease of “Super 8” certainly does the trick.
What it doesn’t let anyone in on is the plot of the movie or the rest of the context that we had heard actually generated the idea. Namely, the possibility that a group of kids in 1979 are playing around making movies with their Super 8 cameras (as Abrams and Spielberg did as kids) and accidentally capture something … sinister, on film.
Now, despite all our requests, Abrams and camp have refused to confirm anything about the plot. Abrams has said he doesn’t want to comment on this — he’d rather maintain the mystery and let the images speak for themselves.
Fair enough, and certainly expected. So take all these plot descriptions you’re reading around the web with a giant heap of salt.
Talk about a match made in Hollywood heaven: Spielberg & Abrams! Another reason to see Iron Man 2 this weekend — a chance to see the “Super 8” teaser.
UPDATE: Here’s the trailer: