Los Angeles Premiere Of Warner Bros. Pictures 'Focus' Will Smith (Photo : Axelle/Bauer-Griffin)
Following the trend of creating live-action adaptations of timeless cartoon classics, reports reveal that Will Smith is circling the upcoming re-imagining of Disney's "Dumbo."
As per Variety, Smith is in negotiations to star in Disney's live-action adaptation of "Dumbo," which will be helmed by Tim Burton. Smith will reportedly play the father of a child who develops a close friendship with a lovable elephant after their encounter at the circus.
Tom Hanks has also reportedly been approached to play the role of the villain. However, sources claim he might choose to star in the World War II drama "The Grey Hound" instead.
If ever Smith pursues "Dumbo," this would largely affect "Bad Boys for Life," the third movie in the "Bad Boys" franchise. Both "Dumbo" and "Bad Boys for Life" have the same filming schedule, which means if Smith commits to "Dumbo" the filming for "Bad Boys for Life" would have to be pushed back to a later date and could face the threat of being axed completely.
Burton is set to direct the live-action adaptation of "Dumbo" based on the script written by Ehren Kruger. "The studio is moving aggressively toward a production start with a script by Ehren Kruger about the big-eared, lovable elephant," Deadline reported.
Meanwhile, Smith just completed filming the Netflix movie "Bright." He was also recently seen in the drama "Collateral Beauty" with Helen Mirren, Kate Winslet and Keira Knightley.
"Dumbo" is one of the several titles from Disney's library of classics that is being given the live-action treatment. This 2017, Disney will premiere the live-action adaptation of "Beauty and the Beast," starring Emma Watson and Dan Stevens.
"Mulan" is also reportedly in production, as well as "Lion King" and "Jungle Book 2" which will be directed by Jon Favreau. Another "Snow White" movie is reportedly being developed at Disney.
Disney has met success with its live-action adaptations, particularly with "Maleficent," "Cinderella" and the more recent one "The Jungle Book." The latter alone scored $900 million at the worldwide box office. It is presumed that the success achieved by "The Jungle Book" helped fast track developments for other live-action adaptations.
