James Thurber’s short story The Secret Life of Walter Mitty was adapted into a film in 1947. It feels like they’ve been trying to remake it ever since. Walter Mitty has been ping ponging around Hollywood for years now; the tale of a meek man who has a full inner fantasy life where he’s a hero has attracted the likes of Jim Carrey over time, but no one has stuck.
The latest name: Gore Verbinski, according to the same 20th Century Fox Twitter feed that announced Andy Serkis in Rise of the Apes. According to the feed Verbinski will direct from Steve Conrad’s long gestating screenplay.
Verbinski has the animated film Rango coming up, and this could well be his next project. Sacha Baron-Cohen has been rumored to be the latest actor attached to the role.