20,000 Leagues Under The Sea Runs Aground

Walt Disney Pictures has halted development on Captain Nemo: 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, according to Variety.

Leagues was scheduled to begin shooting in February with “Terminator Salvation” director McG at the helm, however the latest news is that McG has now been released and the film has been postponed indefinitely. According to Variety:

The studio confirmed that the studio won’t proceed with the film for now, and reps for the director confirmed he has withdrawn. McG will concentrate on other projects that include “Dead Spy Running,” a Warner Bros. drama that Stephen Gaghan is writing. McG is also attached to “Terminator 5,” though that movie is on hold indefinitely as the Terminator franchise works its way through bankruptcy court. McG just teamed with “Borat” helmer Larry Charles on a new NBC comedy.

McG, who last directed “Terminator Salvation,” had been attached to “Captain Nemo: 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea” since last January. The Bill Marsilli-scripted pic is an origin story about how Nemo constructed his warship, the Nautilus. The studio made the original 1954 “20,000 Leagues Under the Sea,” as Disney’s first live action film. It won three Oscars and inspired a Disney theme park ride.

The only reason I can assumed for halting such a large project would be a) financial interests; or more likely b) studio are concentrating all their efforts on that other nautical adventure, Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides. Either way, Captain Nemo will have to wait at least a little longer before he gets out into the open sea, at least thank your lucky stars that McG is now off working on an NBC comedy.

Tags: 20000 leagues under the sea, mcg