14 DAY TRIAL // In light of the success of “Alice in Wonderland,” Disney is pushing around several projects dealing with re-telling classic stories from different perspectives. One such project that has been around for quite a while is “Magnificent,” which would tackle the story of “Sleeping Beauty” from the evil sorceress’ perspective – and Angelina Jolie is very interested in playing the lead, says the Los Angeles Times.
So far, Disney has not made any comment on the rumor that is slowly starting to pick up on the Internet and chances are it will be taking its time in doing so, since no one even knows for sure if such a film is ever to be made. There is no script yet and, most importantly, there is a keen awareness of everything that could go wrong with a production that tells the story from the point of view of the bad guy – the evil godmother, in this particular case.
“Earlier this week, the news broke that Disney had hired its longtime collaborator Linda Woolverton (‘Beauty and the Beast,’ ‘The Lion King’) to work on the screenplay for the live-action take on the 50-year-old hit. (Maleficent is the evil fairy godmother in the Disney film; this story would be told, ‘Wicked’-like, from her perspective.) Both Tim Burton and Angelina Jolie had last spring been rumored to join the project, which Disney has been kicking around for a while as a way to mine its library, among other things. Burton’s involvement remains unclear as he contemplates several projects. But sources say that, as of the last few weeks, Jolie is keen on the film and would like to sign on to play the titular villain,” the LA Times writes.
By bringing Angelina Jolie on board, Disney would be certain to reach out to more members of the audience (the men, for instance), the same publication further explains. On the other hand, by telling the story from Maleficent’s perspective, the studio risks losing its target and ever-reliable audience, kids, unless it can come up with a script that will lure them in. Useless to say, pressure on Disney to come up with a brilliant script is huge, so chances are high this project will spend more time in pre-production limbo.
“Of course the choice to make a villain the main character instead of a secondary one could impact Disney’s ability to bring in younger audiences. And the studio would need to contend with far less pre-awareness for a single, lesser-known character than it did for a timeless classic such as ‘Alice in Wonderland.’ But there are also plenty of reasons that Disney, whose new production chief Sean Bailey is said to hold the project close to his heart, would push ‘Maleficent’ forward. With ‘Alice in Wonderland’ a monster hit, it’s hardly a secret that Disney is looking to reprise more classic material. That’s especially true for a movie that, like ‘Alice,’ centers on the battle between two opposing sovereigns,” the LA Times further says.