Will Smith, Michael Mann, and John Logan Team Up for Empire

You can’t get a better team than Will Smith, Michael Mann, and John Logan. One or two of those names alone can get a movie made, but put all three of them together, and you got something pretty special — or at least, very possibly special. The film in question is “Empire”, which is only described as a story about a contemporary global media mogul that would be played by Will Smith. Michael Mann would produce and direct, while John Logan (”The Last Samurai”, “Gladiator”) would script. The drama went to Columbia Pictures, which paid a hefty seven-figure price tag for the movie and the talents already associated with it.

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“Empire” puts the director back in the ring with Smith for the first time since “Ali.” Mann has been working as producer with Smith, Lassiter and Akiva Goldsman on “Hancock” (formerly “Tonight, He Comes”), the Peter Berg-directed Columbia Pictures drama that stars Smith as a disaffected superhero.

Mann, who just produced “The Kingdom” with Scott Stuber for Universal, is in the process of locking down a film he’ll direct early next year.

“Empire” reteams Mann’s with “Gladiator” scribe Logan. They developed “The Aviator” together when Mann planned to direct that picture before handing it to Martin Scorsese to helm and producing the drama.

Logan is still writing the script, so it’ll be a while before the movie gets made.