We’ve all heard the rumors, and the more producer Joel Silver denies it, the more the rumors seem to stick. Which is that the Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig sci-fi thriller “Invasion” (a contemporary re-imagining of “Invasion of the Body Snatchers”) was in deep, deep trouble, and Silver and the studio went to their go-to guys, the Wachowski Brothers, to “fix” it. According to Collider.com, the Wachowskis did just that — by rewriting over 2/3rds of the film, and assigning their go-to guy, “V for Vendetta” director James Mcteigue to direct the re-shoots. And that it was during these reshoots (more action scenes, apparently) that Nicole Kidman recently had her stunt accident.
Says Collider.com:
Apparently, Warner Bros. saw an early rough cut of The Invasion and realized it needed a little work. The director, Oliver Hirschbiegel, was “unavailable” to work on the planned reshoots, so Warner Bros. and Joel Silver brought in a pair of writer/directors that they knew they could rely upon, The Wachowski Brothers. It was reported that they came in to shoot a new ending. But I can report that they rewrote over 2/3 of the film, and brought in their trusted colleague, James Mcteigue (V For Vendetta), to direct the material while they were busy prepping their own film.
Joel Silver and Warner Bros. knew that they were capable of creating a more commercially accessible and large scale film than had previously been put together. Apparently, the earlier cut may have been a little artsy, talky, and not exactly a summer tentpole.
So “Invasion” is more of a Wachowski brothers movie than anyone thought, apparently. If Silver is smart, he’ll promote it as such. No one knows who the hell Oliver Hirschbiegel is, but if you throw out the words “a Wachowski Brothers movie”, you’re going to add about $20-$30 million to the box office without breaking a sweat.
“They’re just reshoots. It’s not like you’ll end up in the hospital or anything. Heh heh.”
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