“Thor: Ragnarok” and “Jojo Rabbit” director Taika Waititi is attached to direct a new feature film take on the “Judge Dredd” British comic property.
Drew Pearce, who penned such films as “Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation,” “Iron Man 3,” “Hotel Artemis” and “The Fall Guy,” is set to write the script.
The pair reportedly both grew up with the books and are friends who have been trying to find a project to work on together for years.
Created in the 1970s for publisher 2000 AD, the comics unfold in the bleak future metropolis of Mega-City One where cops are able to serve as judge, jury, and executioner. Dredd is one of the most noted officers in the city.
Chris Kingsley, Jason Kingsley, Ben Smith, Roy Lee, Jeremy Platt, Natalie Viscuso and Pearce produce. The package is currently being shopped around.
The property has been adapted twice – first with the poorly received 1995 big-budget film “Judge Dredd” starring Sylvester Stallone and Armand Assante, and then in 2012 with the well-received “Dredd” starring Karl Urban, directed by Pete Travis and written by Alex Garland with Garland (“Ex Machina,” “Annihilation”) said to have effectively ghost directed it.
The new take is said to be more in line with the dark satire and world-building of the comics, and could serve as a franchise launcher.
Source: THR
