Two Films On Hold

Work on Robin Williams' latest flick, the effects-laden Bicentennial Man has ground to a halt after the film's budget threatened to move into the $100-million range, according to Variety. The Disney film, which stars Williams as a robot on the verge of becoming a human, was to have been directed by Chris Columbus who collaborated with Williams on Mrs.Doubtfire (1993). It is not yet certain whether the film will ever be completed and its ultimate fate is now hanging in the balance. Also on hold is the James Dean Biopic, James Dean: A Race With Destiny - which was the late Robert Mitchum's last film. Lawyers are still trying to hammer out who should receive on-screen credit for producing the film which stars Casper Van Diem as Dean. Until the legal disputes over this issue are cleared up the biopic will stay on the shelf where it has been since its completion, more than two years ago. "Anything that involves James Dean is cursed. There's always some skeleton in the closet," says Andy Vorzimer, the lawyer for producer-director Mardi Rustam. James Dean: A Race With Destiny also stars Robert Mitchum's grand-daughter Carrie as Dean's love interest, the actress Pier Angeli.