MEG (Development Hell)

[Just Jeans]

Well, it seems this film is now officially trapped in development hell. Last we heard, New Line Cinema had decided not to go ahead with the film, and the rights were meant to revert to Alten in October of this year. Considering there's been no word about New Line Cinema reacquiring the rights, I think it's safe to say MEG is dead in the water.

So, until there's some kind of news about the future of this film, how about we discuss what we'd like to see for the film?

Jan de Bont was attached to direct for a while, but I guess with New Line dropping out, de Bont is probably out of the picture, too. Should the film finally get picked up, I think it'd be neat if Pitof landed the job. Yeah, Catwoman was a steaming pile, but Vidocq was an excellently directed film, and I'd love to see Pitof handle a film about a gigantic, glowing shark.

If not Pitof, then Zack Snyder. The dude has got some serious skill behind the camera.

[Joe Strummer]

sucks this film will probably not come out at all. It's getting quite ridiculous. If marketed properly, New Line will make a killing off it. Everyone loves giant shark movies except for those loser dolphin lover assholes.

[Germaniac]

You can read the first chapters of Meg4: Hell´s Auqarium at Steve Alten´s site. Alten once said he wanted to go ahead with Meg4 as soon as a release date for the movie was announced ... seems like he has given up hope for the movie and writes the book anyway.
Well, there are a lot of Megalodon-movies out there: Shark Attack 3, Shark hunter, Megalodon ... but they all suck! MEG has a chance to be a great movie (if it´s done properly) because i´t´s based on a bestselling novel.

[The One and Only]

Zack Snyder would be perfect for this. I know a lot of people have they're hearts ste on Jan DeBont, but honestly the guy hasn't done a descent flick since Speed. Need I remind you of Speed 2:Cruise Control, The Haunting,and Tomb Raider:The Cradle of Life. Snyder would deliver the balls to the wall shark flick that we've been waiting for since Deep Blue Sea. Although he'd want to make a Hard "R" flick, and New Line would probaly want it kept PG-13 to maximize their audience. Hopefully this project gets off the ground, and be a hit because I'd love to see Alten's other novel THE LOCH adapted to the big screen.

[Scarecrow]

I actually enjoyed Deep Blue Sea and it'd be interesting to see a GOOD Megalodon film...


- Scarecrow

[French Friday]

I would like to see Jan De Bont on board again. And yes, I saw Speed 2 and Tomb Raider 2 and that's exactly for these 2 movies I'm sure he is, if not THE, ONE of the best choices for MEG.

First, Speed 2 is a water-set movie and directing-wise, it was a fabulous water-set movie. The ending of Speed 2 mirrors the ending of MEG and I know the final water-apocalypse with all these boats attacked by the MEG could be handled greatly by De Bont.

Second, the scene at the end of Tomb Raider 2 with the cave creatures was really SCARY and CREEPY and even if it was the ONLY good scene of that whole boring movie, it shows how great De Bont could handle a scary creature movie. The shark scene was there for comedy, so I can't really comment. But the SFX was good. And it was several years ago.

And there's Speed and Twister. Rollercoaster movies. MEG is one of them. Unstoppable thrills. De Bont is great for that.

I don't want to see Pitof near MEG, except for the SFX maybe. Vidocq and Catwoman were very well-made in terms of directing, but there was NEVER any sense of thrills and suspense in these movies. MEG needs thrills and Pitof didn't show me any skills for that. He's good for fantasy and adventure, NOT for horror and thrillers.

(for both Pitof and De Bont, I just compare their directing style, because both need great scripts to make great movies, and most of their previous movies had bad scripts, bad characters, apart Speed 1/2 and Twister)

The best choice would be Wolfgang Petersen. His "Storm" movie was surely the best water-set movie ever made in terms of thrills and handling of the ocean (and virtual ocean).

Steven Spielberg, if he could go back to his Jurassic Park and Jaws skills would be the best choice, but he hates shooting in the water for more than 30 years now. And surely MEG would feel like Jaws 5 (not that it would be a bad idea as IMO, it IS, but I'm sure the general public wouldn't like that)

James Cameron would make a good choice, but he's surely too busy with Avatar...

As for the SFX, take Stan Winston for the animatronics and Phil whatever-his-name-is-I-don't-remember (the one from Star Wars and Spider-Man 1/2/3) for the CGI (or the ones who work on Petersen' Storm I don't remember who it was). Animatronics for all the close shots, CGI for the wide shots, Jurassic Park-like (learn Hollywood, LEARN !)

As for the score, I would say now Marco Verba, if you have listened to his virtual score for MEG, you would know. He's the first one who gave me the impression to be able to give a new shark theme as good as the John Williams one, without copying him. The first track called MEG ends by a short sequence which remembered me the famous Barrel Chase of Jaws, BUT different ! And the themes overall are very exciting.

As for the actors, I stay with Michael Biehn for Jonas. The last time I saw him in his TV series Adventures, Inc (2001 ?), he was in good shape and I think his age is near Jonas's. Maybe he's too old now with MEG being delayed so much. Plus he's not very famous, not an A-list actor, and I don't want an A-list actor for Jonas or Mac. But hollywood is hollywood...

Some thoughts.
ADDED:
Zack Snyder would be perfect for this.

I think so.

Renny Harlin would make a very great choice too. Deep Blue Sea was great in the scenes where it was a shark movie and not a Towering Inferno remake.

[Just Jeans]

Renny Harlin would make a good action flick, but I'm not sure he'd handle the characters themselves very well. I loved Deep Blue Sea, though it was really exciting, but I thought Harlin's decision to cut entire subplots from the film was ill-founded. Some of that character development would have made the cast more sympathetic, particularly Susan.

If I had to pick a someone to make a full-on action flick minus real character development, it'd be Snyder. His stuff is so high octane that you just don't care how slight the characters are.

[Just Jeans]

For those of you who are unfamiliar with MEG, stop reading this and go buy the book (http://www.amazon.com/Meg-Steven-Alten/dp/0385489056/ref=ed_oe_h). You can get the hard back for as cheap as $0.01, so if you like books about giant sharks eating people, you've got no excuse not to read it.

Anyhoo, the MEG film is apparently going ahead, but Nick Nunziata is no longer involved (http://www.chud.com/index.php?type=news&id=13069).

To whom it concerns:

I am officially no longer involved in the motion picture property MEG, based on the book by Steve Alten. The reasons are many and after the better part of half a decade of effort the relationship has ended and the project proceeds without the involvement of myself as well as a handful of other producers. The project, as I've been told, is going in a different direction.

I'd like to thank the readers and fans of the book who were helpful, excited, and sometimes skeptical of what were trying to do and am sorry to say I will not be a part of any future incarnation of MEG as much I'd like to be and feel I deserve to be. This project has been a learning experience to be sure, one that will shape the way I work on all future ones and the people with whom I align myself. I wish Steve Alten and Belle Avery luck in their decision and where it leads them.

- Nick Nunziata

I wonder what this means? I wish he would have elaborated. I'm not fussed about what went on with Nick Nunziata behind the scenes -- that's his own private business, after all -- but I'm dead curious to know what he means by "going in a different direction".

Reading between the lines, I get the impression he's a little bitter about what's going on, so it worries me.

I suppose the fact that Alten wrote the screenplay, and that he likely isn't a part of the WGA, might have something to do with this finally getting off the ground.

[El Diablo]

Nick made a few odd comments in one of the threads over at the CHUD forums discussing AVP-R. He seemed to be hinting at some friction with that film's writer, Shane Salerno, who also had writing duties on MEG. In regards to his defense of Salerno back when AICN posted their script review of AVP-R last year, he responded by saying, "I backed the wrong horse." This could just mean that he hated the movie but he also said the following regarding the MEG project.

"I wish I could say more but I can't... actually I can say more because I am as of today officially no longer involved with MEG!

But I'll be a nice guy. Bottom line is that I put my trust and belief in a handful of the wrong people."

[Just Jeans]

Interesting. I hope we get some details -- polite details, mind -- sometime soon. I'd like to know just what the heck is going on with this film, and at what stage of development it's in.

[Cody]

'Meg' movie remains trapped in the depths (http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/movies/la-ca-newline13apr13,1,3860059.story?page=1)

New Line thought the bestselling book could become a film franchise, but after spending millions, the studio passed.
By Robert W. Welkos, Special to The LA Times
April 13, 2008

THE scene opens with a herd of duckbill dinosaurs gorging on kelp. A Tyrannosaurus rex, towering 22 feet, suddenly appears, unleashing a blood curdling roar as its prey scatter, but one duckbill dinosaur remains trapped in the water.

The T-Rex crashes through the surf and ruthlessly rips him from the sea. It suddenly stops -- sensing a powerful presence in the water. Its red reptilian eyes, glowing like lasers, scan the ocean. A massive creature hidden in its own towering wave explodes out of the water. The T-Rex is rocketed off its feet with an anguished roar, flipped onto its back with its feet in the air and spun like a cylinder as it is dragged beneath the water. A slick pool of blood floats on the surface.

We've witnessed a prehistoric homicide but the identity of the undersea killer remains a complete mystery . . . ."

Thus begins "Meg," a screenplay by Shane Salerno based on author Steve Alten's 1997 bestselling pulp novel about a Carcharodon megalodon, the 80-foot, 70,000-pound shark that roamed the Earth's oceans millions of years ago. When the book was first published, Alten figured that his story about a prehistoric being that mysteriously resurfaces from geothermal layers of the oceans' deepest gorge -- the Mariana Trench -- to terrorize the modern world would make for a great summer popcorn movie, "Jaws" for a new generation. So did Hollywood.

But a dozen years later, Alten, who resides in Florida, is still looking for a studio to make a film of "Meg," after Disney's Hollywood Pictures and then New Line Cinema each developed the project but ultimately passed on producing it. "I thought the movie would have been out and we'd be in sequels now," Alten said. "We think we have a billion-dollar franchise. . . . Unfortunately, the timing hasn't worked out."

In recent weeks, however, a new financier has stepped forward with plans to finally bring "Meg" to the big screen. Apelles Publishing Inc. of Abington, Va., has optioned the rights from Alten with veteran Hollywood producers Lawrence Gordon ("Die Hard") and Lloyd Levin ("Boogie Nights"), along with Virginia-based film financing consultant Belle Avery, set to produce. Gordon and Levin have a track record of taking projects put in turnaround at one studio and successfully setting them up at another, the latest examples being "Watchmen" at Warner Bros. and "Hellboy II: The Golden Army" at Universal.

But the story of how "Meg" went from a white-hot book property to a troubled movie project illustrates the difficulties studios face when developing large-scale action movies, especially when they're set on the water ("Jaws" and "Waterworld" being two legendary examples). It also provides a behind-the-scenes look at how a studio -- in this case, New Line -- grappled with a project for years but couldn't figure out how to make it work, even after investing millions.

After a 40-year run, New Line -- the company that made the blockbuster "Lord of the Rings" trilogy, and more recently, the expensive but underperforming "The Golden Compass" -- was recently folded into parent company Warner Bros. after essentially three years of box-office flops (with a few exceptions). More and more these days, success in Hollywood depends on betting on big-budget franchises, and at one point, New Line seemed poised to gamble on "Meg," which had obvious sequel potential. The studio hired director Jan de Bont ("Speed"), who brought in a team of special effects and production experts to assist him, and even pre-sold rights on the picture to foreign distributors. But after 2 1/2 years in development, the studio pulled the plug.

New Line cited a number of factors that went into its decision to cut bait on "Meg" -- primarily because it says the risks ultimately outweighed the benefits. "The script needed a lot of work; it was very expensive; and we did not choose the director or producers, who were already attached," a New Line spokeswoman said in a statement e-mailed to The Times.

But others involved see it differently: "It was a completely blown opportunity," lamented De Bont. "It is such a fantastic subject matter."

In the summer of 1995, Alten had read a magazine article about the Mariana Trench and thought, "What if a shark lived down at those incredible depths?" Thus, "Meg" was born. During the day, Alten worked as manager of a wholesale meat company. At night, he would stay up until 3 a.m. writing his book. Then in 1996, on a Friday the 13th, he was fired from his job. But four days later, his book idea paid off big-time.

Disney snatched up the film rights before the manuscript was even sold. The book then became the object of a bidding war among New York publishers with Bantam/Doubleday signing Alten to a two-book deal worth $2.1 million. The novel became the hit of the Frankfurt Book Fair, the largest in the world, with foreign rights sold to 24 countries for more than $1.3 million. The book has since spawned three sequels, with the latest, "Meg: Hell's Aquarium," scheduled for release in summer 2009.

Alten had high hopes after his book was sold to Disney but grew frustrated when the scripts the studios developed veered wildly from his novel.

"They stuck wings on the shark," Alten recalled with a laugh. "I'm not kidding! They wouldn't listen to anything I had to say. My role has got to be to keep the science and not the ridiculousness for Hollywood's sake. One screenwriter had the shark growling."

Regaining momentum

In 1998, Hollywood Pictures -- embroiled in a management shake-up and with rival studio Warner Bros. doing a competing shark picture, "Deep Blue Sea" -- decided to put "Meg" in turnaround, Alten recalled. That same year, "The Trench," Alten's sequel to the "Meg" novel, was released and also became a bestseller.

After several years with no movement on the project, Alten wrote his own adaptation. He showed the script to Nick Nunziata, creator of the movie website CHUD.com, who had loved the novel and thought it would make a hit film. Nunziata, in turn, showed the script to director Guillermo del Toro. He, in turn, showed the script to Gordon and Levin, whom he had worked with on "Hellboy." The producers then approached De Bont, whom they had worked with on "Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life."

"From the beginning, I loved the project," De Bont recalled. "It's like an adventure. It stimulates your imagination." To this day, he even keeps a megalodon's tooth in his office.

In August 2004, New Line expressed interest in making "Meg" but would not commit to Alten's script since some felt it too closely resembled "Jurassic Park." So, the studio hired screenwriter Salerno ("Armageddon") to write a new script.

On April 10, 2005, Variety reported that "Meg" had been picked up by New Line with Gordon and Levin producing along with Del Toro (who would eventually leave the project), De Bont, Nunziata and Alten's managers, Ken Atchity and Chi-Li Wong. The article also mentioned a fast-tracked release date of summer 2006 and a $75-million budget. New Line was so high on the project that it included "Meg" among its slate of 10 film projects the studio pitched to foreign distributors at the 2005 Cannes Film Festival.

In September, Salerno turned in his first draft, with at least a quarter of the script featuring scenes under water. In a memo dated Sept. 28, 2005, the "Meg" development executives, George Waud and Jeff Katz, who have since left New Line, wrote "to reaffirm how excited we are with the current draft. We both feel that with the changes discussed . . . we will be working with a potential classic here."

Based on Salerno's first draft, the studio authorized De Bont to hire a "dream team" of top Hollywood craftsmen with expertise in making big action films. They included visual effects supervisor John Nelson ("Gladiator"), production designer Bill Sandell ("The Perfect Storm") and line producer Colin Wilson ("War of the Worlds"). By putting together such a team, De Bont was signaling that not only was this a high-profile project, but any concerns the studio might have with the director would be assuaged knowing he had respected experts at his side.

De Bont also developed storyboards, animatics (a series of still images edited together and displayed in sequence with music) and worked with designers to build a 5-foot clay-and-fiberglass scale model of a megalodon so that when he went to New Line to make his presentation, studio executives could visualize what the film might look like. When he finished giving his presentation to New Line, he was greeted by applause.

"He invested a substantial amount of money in art work and mock-ups of how the shark would look like," recalled Atchity. "He was convinced they were going to do it. They kept saying they were, but we never really got a clear sign from [New Line co-Chairmen] Bob Shaye and Michael Lynne."

Budget buster

The director also began thinking of a cast, envisioning actor Ken Watanabe as the captain of a Japanese whaling vessel -- a "Hemingway character" who holds to old traditions and doesn't much like the modern ways of whaling. "It was a fantastic role," De Bont said.

Then, in November 2005, New Line got a sticker shock. The estimated production budget on Salerno's first draft soared to $157 million, reinforcing the studio's worst fears that a film shot largely on water and requiring numerous special effects might wind up costing $200 million. New Line immediately ordered the budget slashed to $125 million.

De Bont, Salerno and line producer Wilson cut more than 200 visual effects shots from the script for an estimated savings of $18.9 million. The scenes that were removed included Meg being attacked by a pack of giant Humbolt squid, Meg devouring a surfer and Meg attacking a low-flying helicopter. De Bont figured he could further trim production costs by filming ocean scenes inside 20th Century Fox's huge water tank in Rosarito Beach, where director James Cameron had filmed "Titanic."

On Feb. 27, 2006, New Line production chief Toby Emmerich sent an e-mail stating that he had read the latest script draft and "thought it good" and mentioned he had given it to Shaye. But New Line then demanded more cuts. De Bont recalled Emmerich telling him: "If you bring it down to around $100 million, then [we] will make the movie." The studio declined an interview request for Emmerich.

Although it appeared that "Meg" was all but dead by early summer of 2006, New Line was still floating various budget estimates. But the "dream team" couldn't wait any longer for a commitment and departed for other films. Still, New Line wasn't ready to deep-six "Meg" just yet. Studio executive Richard Brener was put in charge and, sources say, he reassured everyone that the movie would be made.

But on June 6, 2007, after stories had appeared in the media citing New Line's string of box office failures and rumors of management dysfunction, Atchity sent out an e-mail to the "Meg" team recounting a phone conversation he had with the studio:

"While NL holds rights to 'Meg' until 10/30/07, we have not found a way to go on with the movie after all chiefly because physical production does not believe that the budget will hold to $100m -- and we cannot go back to our foreign distributors and ask for overrun increases."

De Bont said he felt that if he could only get Shaye's ear things might work out, but reaching Shaye was nearly impossible during this tumultuous period at New Line. The studio's founder was hospitalized with an infection for a period and later went off to direct his own movie, "The Last Mimzy," which was co-written by Emmerich.

Bill Mechanic, the former production chief at 20th Century Fox, said New Line isn't alone in being cautious when betting on a tent-pole picture. At any one time, he noted, a major studio might have 25 to 50 such projects in development and it's not uncommon for studios to spend years trying to get a franchise made. "X-Men" was seven or eight years in development, he recalled.

"Most of the [tent-pole franchises] come out of big ideas," Mechanic said. " 'Poseidon' seemed like a good idea but, in retrospect, it was a terrible idea.' " On the other hand, he added, "most people thought 'Titanic' was a stupid idea and wondered 'Why are you making a moving about a ship that sinks?' "

"Titanic," of course, went on to become one of the biggest blockbusters of all-time. Whether or not another studio will bet on "Meg" remains to be seen.

"With all due respect, there are a billion movies in the naked city that don't get made," said Robert Newman, agent for Del Toro. But "it was not a bad idea for a movie, if done correctly."

[French Friday]

Interesting reading. Full story of the MEG's development hell.

In a way, it makes me happy the "cheap" New Line version of the movie hasn't been made (cutting the surf attack and the helicopter attack are clearly the worst ideas as they are the cult scenes from the book). This movie has to be made "complete". You can't make that kind of movie cheap. You can (must) use the Jaws techniques for half the movie, for the scare factor, but you need the key scenes to be there. You need it to be a blockbuster.

I wish New Line would have understood that a $200 millions movie today is like a $100 millions movie when Jurassic Park was made. It's not that big of a risk, considering worldwide box office and DVD, and the already written sequels who will make the second and third and fourth movie way faster to make without ruining the story and the characters. Hire just a George Clooney kind of bankable actor to play Jonas and you've got your risks down at zero (and he fought killer tomatoes and vampires, he could fight a meg, no ? :p ).

In the case of MEG, the producers shouldn't think "$200 millions for one movie" but "$200 millions to make the first movie of a tetralogy with all the SFX work, set designs and actors/crew contracts for the first movie available for the three others.

And add a lot of beautyful girls in tiny bathsuits to attrack the young male teenagers... Easy to do without it being forced as it's an ocean-set movie.

They just should have made MEG with the benefits from LOTR in 2004 or 2005. Where all this money has passed within 5 years ? LOTR made billions of dollars worldwide ! Why couldn't they use $200 millions of them for MEG ?

This is simply a curse.

[Just Jeans]

The attack on the surfer is hands down my favorite scene in the book. I would hope it's re-inserted if the film ends up getting the green light at another studio.

[French Friday]

At least we have Hell's Aquarium then Night Stalkers coming in 2009 and then a few years after.

[Just Jeans]

I still need to read The Trench and MEG: Primal Waters. I own them both, but I haven't embarked in reading them. I'm planning to re-read MEG first because I've not read it since 2000 or 2001.

[French Friday]

Read them, you won't be disappointed.

[Zombie]

Sucks it won't ever be made (by the look of things) I was really looking forward to this as well. I never read the books and never will as I'm not a reading kind of person. Last books I read was Jurrassic Park and Lost World, I just don't remember if I read them before or after the movies. I think the first one I read after the movie came out and LW I read before? Even though I know these are probably worth the read, I just wouldn't have the time in my already no time for anything life lol Like now, it's freaken 3am and should have been in bed 4-5 hours ago but I couldn't sleep and just been finding more and more interesting sites and or stuff on the cpu right now that I wish it wasn't this late or that I didn't have to work tomorrow! ARGH!!

Well anyways.. Here's what could have been!!! (Kinda)

http://www.bigmarinefish.com/goodbye.gif


I don't know if this image is like a "creation" by someone, or if it's from a clip/scene from and actual movie.
The only thing I can think of if it's a scene from a movie is from one of those cheap DTV movies about "Megalodon"?
Just kind of cool seeing a shark that's big enough to eat a guy whole, lol.

[Joe Strummer]

That man jumping into the shark's mouth gif is from Shark Attack 3: Megalodon, I believe.

Man, I want a new high budget shark movie so bad! Deep Blue Sea is the last I can remember, but it's no JAWS.

[Monkey]

Damn. When I originally saw this thread, I was thinking it was a sequel to "May". Not even close... :sniffle:

You can never have too many shark films. Being in the ocean is terrifying for me, thanks to Jaws. I was diving in guam and would sometimes feel fish bumping into me. Reminds you that when you're underwater, you're completely at the mercy of the things swimming around you... (especially when you're 60 feet under). :scared:

[El Rooto]

Well anyways.. Here's what could have been!!! (Kinda)

http://www.bigmarinefish.com/goodbye.gif

I remember watching that movie...fuckin' hilarious.

[Scarecrow]

Sucks it won't ever be made (by the look of things) I was really looking forward to this as well. I never read the books and never will as I'm not a reading kind of person. Last books I read was Jurrassic Park and Lost World, I just don't remember if I read them before or after the movies. I think the first one I read after the movie came out and LW I read before? Even though I know these are probably worth the read, I just wouldn't have the time in my already no time for anything life lol Like now, it's freaken 3am and should have been in bed 4-5 hours ago but I couldn't sleep and just been finding more and more interesting sites and or stuff on the cpu right now that I wish it wasn't this late or that I didn't have to work tomorrow! ARGH!!

Well anyways.. Here's what could have been!!! (Kinda)

http://www.bigmarinefish.com/goodbye.gif


I don't know if this image is like a "creation" by someone, or if it's from a clip/scene from and actual movie.
The only thing I can think of if it's a scene from a movie is from one of those cheap DTV movies about "Megalodon"?
Just kind of cool seeing a shark that's big enough to eat a guy whole, lol.


Shart Attack 3 alert! Vacate the thread! Vacate the thread!


- Scarecrow

[God of Thunder]

I used to have the book for this, but I must have lost it. I remember I read the first few chapters, it seemed really good. It's sad to see that this isn't going well in development, the killer shark genre needs a comeback. I kind of thought it would come with DEEP BLUE SEA... but it didn't do too well, unfortunately. Although, I'd rather have them can the idea if they're going to halfass it like people are saying. And I'm probably alone here..... but I dug Shark Attack 3. I used to watch it a lot when I was 11, and I thought it was cool, and I still think it's cool (although it's pretty flawed). Too bad things aren't going in this flick's favor.

[Cody]

Update and another Alten movie (http://www.bloody-disgusting.com/news/belle-avery-talks-grizzly-park-and-the-long-delayed-meg)

"We have a new script out," producer Belle Avery explains, "It went through its nightmares at New Line and all the various producers. Now it’s in the right hands, with Lloyd Levin, and Larry Gordon attached as producers and these are amazing guys, their track record with TOMB RAIDER and HELLBOY speaks for itself - they get movies made!" Avery continues, "The new script is quite wonderful, we have it out to an A-list director and we are waiting to hear back. I can’t tell you who it is, but let’s put it this way… it doesn’t get any better. The key to MEG is having a great script and our new script really reflects the book. There is no comparisons between the last script, night and day different, so many hands were involved in the last version, and the only thing that remained similar to the book, in my opinion, were the characters names, everything thing else was changed. One of the things about Steve Alten’s book is that it’s so much fun, and completely adaptable for the screen. There are things that we have never seen before. We stuck to the book, it’s a wonderful action packed and really fun script. The next step is getting the director. Jeff Katz is currently not involved, but that’s not to say that he won’t be in the future, we love Jeff!"

Avery also chatted about other projects that are in the works, including a new Loch Ness movie!

"Right now I am working on THE LOCH, based on another Steve Alten book, about the Loch Ness Monster and it’s going to be filmed in Scotland. The publishers have the rights and they are letting us move forward, I am in talks with a great director for it!"

[Denzil]

That is great news. Those are two movies that i would love to see.

[French Friday]

Sounds good, but I don't want to get excited too soon.

[Just Jeans]

I refuse to get excited at all until the cameras start rollin'. This project just has too much history with falling to bits.

[The One and Only]

Interview with Steve Alten on the ups and downs of trying to get MEG on the big screen. (http://www.joblo.com/arrow/index.php?id=15360)

[Cody]

And another mention (http://chud.com/articles/articles/18845/1/STEADY-LEAK-YOUR-QUESTIONS-FOR-NICK-NUNZIATA-1/Page1.html) from Nunziata

We have been talking to a few folks about MEG, some diverse and interesting directorial possibilities. We have a new script from Steve Alten (no more Shane Salerno), and I think the new MEG book should help us with awareness. I don't know. I think we'll eventually get a movie done but in retrospect it seems like bullets were dodged in the past.

Sounds like it's still in the exact same position it was in last May.

[The One and Only]

Arrow In the Head.com's very own Jim Law asks, "When can Hollywood come up with another good shark movie ?" (http://www.joblo.com/arrow/index.php?id=16316) Trust me it does have something to do with this thread.;)

[Cody]

Questions for Nunziata (http://chud.com/articles/articles/19251/1/STEADY-LEAK-YOUR-QUESTIONS-FOR-NICK-NUNZIATA-5/Page1.html)

If you had to put a percentage on MEG getting to screens in the next three years what would it be?

10%. But, I feel that it'll be in production within those three years. So, if you'd have said five years I'd have said something like 90%. In some ways the project is back at the starting blocks, but I think it's a much stronger project now. More focused. Less compromised. I could be wrong. I just like the mindset and it seems real strides are being made, ones that will hopefully cut back on the politics and focus on bringing Steve's story to life.

[Just Jeans]

Oh goody, more non-news. Sigh.

[Denzil]

So annoying. I would love to see this film. However, i'm keeping my expectations of this ever happening pretty low.

[God of Thunder]

Thread necrophilia.

Anything at all in the last year and a half?

[WesReviews]

I can remember when the author (or someone proclaiming to be the author) used to post at the old board, swearing that the movie was close to coming together. :sniffle:

You know, if he can't get this off the ground finally in the era when big, overblown shark flicks are pretty popular (Megashark vs Giant Octopus, Bait 3-D, Sharktopus, etc.) it will NEVER happen. Now is the golden opportunity.

[God of Thunder]

I'm laughing my ass off at all the 'problems' costwise this movie is facing. I mean, really????

They can't do a giant shark movie for under a hundred million dollars???

Wow. Why not, instead of using unspeakably expensive (and ultimately video game-like) CGI, perhaps they'd spend considerably less on an actual mechanical giant shark? And use actual fake blood and gore makeup effects? I mean, really? A surfer being devoured by a shark was a major budget problem that costs tens of thousnads of dollars? Wow.

Give me the proper means to do it, I could probably get it done myself for about 6 million bucks, tops.

[WesReviews]

I have a feeling that by the time this finally gets made, other giant shark flicks will have already mined some of its better ideas and scenes.