Will Smithis making yet another curious career choice. The actor is coming off of starring as Deadshot in the DC filmSuicide Squadand leading the saccharine, critically malignedCollateral Beauty, and now he’s got his eye onDumboof all things.Varietyreports that Smith is circling the Disney live-action adaptation, which hasTim Burtonattached to direct from a script byTransformers: Age of ExtinctionscribeEhren Kruger. Burton has been attached to direct the film for a few years now, but with Disney’s live-action slate off and running with a string of successes that includeCinderellaandThe Jungle Book, the Mouse House is now moving “aggressively” towards a start-date onDumbo.
Scheduling difficulties could ultimately prevent Smith from officially signing on, but the prospect is there. He’s currently gearing up to begin production on the sequelBad Boys for Life, for which he’ll reteam withMartin Lawrencefor directorJoe Carnahan. That film is getting a script polish at the moment to get everything tailored to everyone’s liking, but Variety notes thatDumboandBad Boys 3would shoot at the same time, so if Smith choosesDumbothen theBad Boyssequel could be pushed back “or shelved entirely.” That would certainly be a surprising development, but movement on theBad Boysfollow-up has been rather slow-going, with Smith and Lawrence apprehensive to make the sequel unless it’s just right, so if Smith loses interest that would be that.
Smith would take on the role of a father whose children fall in love with the titular elephant at the circus. Variety notes thatTom Hankshas also been approached for a villain role, but theSullyactor may instead decide to star in the World War II dramaGreyhound.
Smith is currently filmingBright, a sci-fi cop movie that reteams Smith withSuicide SquaddirectorDavid Ayer. The project is a Netflix original, and Smith has also made clear that he’s keen on reprising his Deadshot role in a future DCEU film—thoughSuicide Squad 2may be further away than expected as Ayer recently signed on to helm theMargot Robbie-frontedGotham City Sirens.
Dumbois one ofa bounty of live-action films Disney is developing, withBeauty and the Beastnext on the docket for release in March, followed byMulanin November 2018—although that film doesn’t yet have a director or cast. The studio also hasThe Lion Kingheating up with directorJon FavreauandAladdincoming via directorGuy Ritchie.
They’ve certainly got a proven track record so far, but something aboutDumboand those currently involved with the project doesn’t inspire a ton of confidence. Let’s hope we’re pleasantly surprised.
