Another week, another WORLD WAR Z tidbit, but these last couple have actually been “good” news. First, Brad Pitt said he wasn’t worried about the problems with WORLD WAR Z, saying it was just experiencing normal problems that plague big blockbuster films. Now, screenwriter Drew Goddard (CLOVERFIELD, CABIN IN THE WOODS) has downplayed the toxic rumors that have spread regarding WORLD WAR Z (rumors or not, a couple rewrites have been made and the release date has been pushed back several months. That’s fact.).
Goddard got involved after it was leaked that the film had major 3rd act issues and that Damon Lindelof was hired to take a look at it. Seeing that there were more problems than he originally thought, he tossed the baton to his pal Goddard. Apparently, that’s not entirely accurate. Goddard says that ”A lot got blown out of proportion about that…This happens a lot where studios ask you to come and look at movies, and then you give your opinion on them. That’s really what happens, and then you throw out some ideas for ways to make the movie better, but that happens on tons of movies.”
In fact, it sounds like his work was essentially a favor: ”I’m just friends with people at Paramount, and they had me do it…Somehow that leaked out. It became a much bigger deal. I just watched the movie and gave them ideas for how to make it better.” In fact, he won’t even get a writing credit: ”I wrote down some ideas, but it wasn’t like ‘Drew’s rewriting the movie’…I will not have a writing credit on that movie.”
At this point I have no idea what to make of WORLD WAR Z. Is it going to be awful, good, or surprisingly awesome? Who knows. In fact, this negative aura surrounding it may serve to temper expectations enough to make it a surprise hit. The film opens June 23, 2013, and stars Brad Pitt, Mireille Enos, David Morse, and Matthew Fox.
