Inside the troubled ‘World War Z’ production

Brad Pitt went into producing and starring in  Paramount’s “World War Z,” based on a best-selling Max Brooks novel about  zombies in a post-apocalyptic world, hoping to kick off a trilogy that would  amount to more than just a series of PG-13 popcorn movies.

“Can we take this genre movie and use it as a Trojan horse for sociopolitical  problems, and what would the effect on the world be if everything we knew was  upside-down and pulled out from under us?” he told The Hollywood Reporter in  January, suggesting that his inspiration was the iconic 1974 disaster epic, “The  Towering Inferno.”

It now seems that everything was upside-down on “World War Z.” “A nightmare  from top to bottom,” describes one source with ties to the production, which  appears to have been hampered from the outset by a lack of clear creative  direction. Pitt hired the director of his choosing, Marc Forster (“The Kite  Runner,” “Finding Neverland”), but Forster — who has limited experience on  effects-heavy tent-poles — was not allowed to bring along his usual team.  Instead, several more seasoned players were hired. The result, say multiple  sources, is a seemingly headless enterprise driven by conflicts. At this point,  the movie, with a price tag now said to be north of $170 million, needs as many  as five weeks of complex re-shoots, which are not expected to get underway until  at least September. Paramount has taken the unusual step of hiring “Prometheus”  scriptwriter Damon Lindelof to rework the film’s third act. The studio announced  in March that it was moving the film to June 2013 from December.

Trouble emerged early: Three weeks before shooting was to begin in June 2011,  sources say Forster had not made critical decisions about what the zombies would  look like and how they would move. “They just couldn’t get it right,” one  insider says. “There was a lot of spinning of plates, a lot of talking. [But]  they did not have a plan.” Meanwhile, seasoned below-the-line talents were  hired, then replaced, including line producer Colin Wilson (“Avatar”) and  Oscar-winning effects man John Nelson (“Gladiator”). Cinematographer Robert  Richardson, who has three Oscars, is said to have asked to leave the production  on more than one occasion. (None would comment for this report.)

“World War Z” is one of several recent projects that underscore the risks  associated with big effects films, especially when untested directors are  involved. Disney saw first-time live-action director Andrew Stanton’s “John  Carter” bomb in March, and Universal is facing serious problems with the $175  million to $200 million Keanu Reeves samurai film 47 Ronin, which it pushed into  2013 after first-timer Carl Rinsch presided over a chaotic shoot. Industry  veterans say World War Z is another example of a film that was green-lighted and  sent into production with a concept and script that were not fully baked. And  they cite this situation as one of many in which studios set release dates and  then push to finish in the time frame allotted, leaving insufficient prep  time.

In Paramount’s case, “World War Z” is the third film — along with “Hansel  and Gretel: Witch Hunters” and “G.I. Joe: Retaliation” — to be shoved out of  2012, leaving the studio with just a trickle of movies for this year.  Sources involved with the project believe it was assured a green light  because of the longstanding relationship between Pitt and Paramount chief Brad  Grey, who once managed the star and was a partner in Pitt’s Plan B production  company. (When Grey took the job at Paramount in 2005, Plan B promptly moved  there from Warner Bros.)

Paramount insulated itself on “World War Z” to some degree by taking on  partners, including producer Graham King and Silicon Valley scion David  Ellison’s Skydance Productions. Sources say both made efforts, to little effect,  to intervene as the movie got into trouble.

Several sources question Pitt’s choice of Forster to direct. The only film on  Forster’s resumé in the action vein is the 2008 James Bond movie “Quantum of  Solace,” which disappointed creatively compared to its immediate predecessor,  “Casino Royale.” Sources with ties to “World War Z” say the hope was that  Forster could focus on character and story while a strong crew could guide him  on action and effects. Among those brought on was Simon Crane, the second-unit  director who helped to salvage Pitt’s 2005 film “Mr. & Mrs. Smith.” But even  Forster’s detractors say the attempt to bolster him created its own  problems.

“The director was not empowered,” says one insider. “There was nobody that  steered the ship. When you get [a director] who can’t do it all you get a  struggle as to whose is the singular voice.”

There were other problems. As the movie was being prepped last spring, Pitt  and his producing partner, Dede Gardner, were busy with Killing Them Softly, a  small film that played Cannes in May. Then Pitt was unavailable because he was  spending time with his family. By the time Gardner began to focus on the project  a few weeks before shooting, a source says, “the disaster was already well in  the making.” (Gardner, Pitt and Forster did not respond to requests for  comment.)

It was unclear to several people working on the film whether Paramount was  fully aware of the mounting issues, including the insufficient time allotted for  the shoot. While Crane is said to have wanted 60 days or more for second-unit  work, for example, the schedule called for about a third of that. Some insiders  expected that Pitt could use his influence with Grey to get more time and money,  but sources say the studio provided neither. Instead, it replaced key crew  members such as line producer Wilson. (Ian Bryce, whose credits include  Transformers, took his place. Wilson did not respond to a request for  comment.)

As the production wended its way through locations in London, Glasgow, Malta  and Budapest, there was still more trouble. By several accounts, cinematographer  Richardson struggled to impose order, antagonizing other crew members in the  process. A colleague says Richardson is highly gifted but doesn’t respond well  to weakness at the top. “If you waffle at all, you get slammed,” he says.

Then in October, proceedings were disrupted when a Hungarian anti-terrorism  unit raided an airport warehouse and confiscated 85 fully functional automatic  assault rifles that were to be used on the shoot. (The guns were not supposed to  be operational, and it is illegal to transport such weapons into the country.)  With the movie already behind schedule and over budget, Pitt was said to be  livid at the mistake  and perhaps wearying of a project that was  showing no sign of ending.

While such significant problems do not ordinarily augur well, it is possible  to pull troubled movies back from the brink. (The Bourne Identity is one vivid  example.) “The footage from this film looks fantastic, but we all agreed it can  have a better ending,” Paramount film group president Adam Goodman tells The  Hollywood Reporter. “Getting the ending correct is essential, and we are in that  creative process. “World War Z” is a giant summer movie and we are confident it  will be a global hit when it’s released June 2013.”

Another source associated with “World War Z” says he believes the movie can  be saved. “It’s a great first 45 minutes, maybe even an hour,” he says.

And in that January interview, Pitt seemed sure the movie would find at least  some enthusiastic fans. “I know my boys are going to like it,” he said. He  seemed less sanguine, however, about the prospects for a  trilogy.

(content courtesy of The Hollywood Reporter; image courtesy of blastr.com)

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