Per Variety, director Robert Zemeckis is in final negotiations to direct a new adaptation of Roald Dahl‘s The Witches. First adapted into a feature film in 1990 starring Anjelica Huston, a new adaptation has been in the works for some time, with Guillermo Del Toro and Alfonso Cuaron at one point hoping to make it a stop-motion film.
Zemeckis will reportedly also co-write the script with Jack Rapke, his long time producing partner. Cuaron and Del Toro also remain on board as producers. Zemeckis’ adaptation is set to follow the source material more closely than the 1990 film.
Warner Bros. has reportedly been keen to find a project for the director after meeting with him in regards to helming the standalone Flash movie. Although talks regarding that film fell through, the studio was impressed enough with Zemeckis’ vision that they sought to find him another project to develop together.
The Witches follows an eight year old boy and his grandmother, who constantly warns the boy about the dangers of witches, who like nothing better than cursing and killing human children. After taking a holiday at a luxury hotel, the pair stumble upon an annual meeting of witches, which includes the grand witch herself.
The project and Zemeckis’ involvement give this a very old school feel, the kind of movie that was often churned out in the 80s and 90s with a director who was popular at the time. It will be interesting to see how this new adaptation fares in contemporary Hollywood.
Zemeckis’ next film however, stars Steve Carrell and is titled Welcome To Marwen. Carrell plays a man who constructs a miniature WWII village to aid his recovery after a violent assault. The film hits cinemas on Wednesday, November 21.
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