It would seem that it’s all change behind the scenes of Warner Bros. and Vertigo Entertainment’s ambitious plan to adapt Stephen King’s **The Stand **into a multi-film epic. Back in August, it was reported that the studio was in talks with Harry Potter veterans Steve Kloves and David Yates to write and direct the movies, but their deals apparently never closed. Now the executives are trying to get Ben Affleck to take on the job.
You’ll recall that in King’s tale a virus kills off 99% of the world’s population, leaving a rag-tag group of survivors trying to make it in a brutal, post-apocalyptic world. And as if that wasn’t enough, they have to deal with troublemakers led by the demonic Randall Flagg.
Deadline is quick to make the point that no deals are in place right now, even though the studio is very high on the idea of Affleck – who has become a respected director in just two movies – taking the job. It remains to be seen whether he wants to step into such a huge project as only his fourth film (not to mention a possible commitment to future sequels).
Right now, he’s busy shooting hostage rescue drama Argo, and we’ll have to see if he actually makes a deal to tackle the King tale. Based on the history of adapting the book for the big screen, we could be in for a few more names floating around before it gets anywhere near cinemas.