A few days after Director Antoine Fuqua abruptly left the project, the plug has now been fully pulled on Universal Pictures $80 million gangster drama "American Gangster" (aka. "Tru Blu") according to Empire.
The project was set to reteam Denzel Washington with his "Training Day" director Fuqua, and add in Benicio Del Toro to the mix. However now, with only a few weeks to go before filming was to begin, the entire project has been scrapped.
Universal has been forthcoming with reasons though - citing the departure of Fuqua over creative differences and the large budget as compelling reasons. Combine that with the fact that despite his acclaim, Denzel's movies rarely break $70 million and combined with tough subject matter - the studio understandably has decided to give up the ghost.
Washington would have played Harlem drug kingpin Frank Lucas, who hit upon a near foolproof get rich quick scheme smuggling heroin in the coffins of dead Vietnam soldiers. The project was produced by Brian Grazer and filming was set for assorted Harlem locations from next month.
Thanks to 'Bleech'.
