Production Weekly, the usually always trustworthy site that contains more inside production info on upcoming projects than you could shake a scoop at, is reporting that McG has his Captain Nemo for 20,000 Leagues Under the Seas: Captain Nemo, and it’s not Will Smith, who the director had been talking up in his early press tour for Terminator Salvation. Instead the site is saying he’s landed The Rock.
This, friends, is an intriguing development, especially for The Rock. I think it’s a great move for him; Nemo is a complex character (well, he was in the book. I don’t know how the movie will portray him) with intriguing motivation. While the movie will likely be a PG-13 family friendly film, it won’t be the kind of kiddie swill The Rock has been churning out for the last few years. It’s a much-needed return to action and adventure for a guy who is too good to be playing the unlikely babysitter again and again.
As for what this means for the movie itself, I don’t think it changes much. The issue of who is playing Nemo remains one that’s racially awkward; Nemo’s an Indian, and The Rock is no more an Indian than Will Smith, although I guess The Rock is more ethnically vague. The real question is what will the wildly unnecessary Justin Marks, who was brought in to rewrite the script, do with the story?
via Slashfilm