Ruben Fleischer’s New Untitled Sci-Fi Film For Sony Pictures
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In 2009, Ruben Fleischer’s directorial debut Zombieland was a surprise box office and critical success. The zombie comedy catapulted Fleischer into super-stardom, but his follow-up feature, 30 Minutes or Less, brought him back down to Earth. The buddy comedy received mixed reviews from critics and wasn’t nearly as successful as his previous film. Fleischer’s latest, Gangster Squad, performed even worse. Hopefully his newest project can jumpstart his career again.
According to The Wrap, Fleischer is attached to direct and produce a mysterious, untitled science fiction project for Sony Pictures. There is obviously not much known about the premise, but it is based on Fleischer’s own pitch to the movie studio. Sony hired screenwriter Eric Pearson, who will be making his screenwriting feature film debut with Fleischer’s sci-fi film.
Eric Pearson was the post-production manager at Pixar Animation and worked on some of the studio’s key films, including Ratatouille for Brad Bird and Up for Pete Docter. He has two scripts on Hollywood’s 2010 Blacklist of popular unproduced scripts: a romantic comedy called Perfect Match and a drama titled Out of State.
Although 30 Minutes or Less and Gangster Squad were middling movies, it will be interesting to see what Fleischer can do with the science fiction genre. Fleischer’s Zombieland was surprisingly funny and heartfelt, but that had a lot to do with the cast of the film, including Woody Harrelson, Jesse Eisenberg, Emma Stone, and Abigail Breslin. Perhaps Ruben Fleischer can bring some of that magic to his new project. Lord knows he needs a hit on his hands.
This is probably the best sequence Ruben Fleischer has ever directed:
