Studio heads around Tinseltown must be feeling the same sort of anticipation as we are about helmer Guillermo Del Toro’s upcoming “Pacific Rim,” and now the film’s writers are feeling some of those good vibes.
While “Wrath of the Titans” writer Travis Beacham was credited with the final script for “Pacific Rim,” screenwriters Marcus Dunstan and Patrick Melton wrote the spec script entitled “Monstropolis”—which apparently got the the makers of the film all excited, and landed them a gig working on the project. Now THR is reporting that the pair will help bring another potential video game franchise to the big screen in the form of “God of War,” with the duo being tasked by Universal to do a rewrite on the long-gestating adaptation’s script. At one time Brett Ratner was linked to the project, but he exited a few years back, and we’d guess that Universal is starting back at square one. For the uninitiated, “God Of War” follows the Spartan warrior Kratos, who has many “Clash of the Titans”-like adventures as he battles mythological beings like Medusa, Cyclops and the Hydra. His ultimate goal is to track down the notorious Pandora's Box and destroy Ares, the god of war – all while shedding a ton of blood along the way.
The bloodshed part shouldn’t be hard for Melton and Dunstan, they’re the guys behind the last four “Saw” films, the recent “Piranha 3DD,” and 2009’s home invasion chiller “The Collector” – with Dunstan taking the directorial reins on that one. Looks as if the screenwriting duo is now on track to head into deeper waters within the studio world, and it looks as if the action tentpole is their new specialty.
Back to “Pacific Rim,” it would appear as if Comic-Con is going to give us a nice little taste of Del Toro’s latest monster mash, with a new image coming from USA Today ahead of “Pacific Rim” taking the stage in San Diego. We can’t say it differs much from the first image we saw of talent Charlie Hunnam and Rinko Kikuchi rocking their mechsuits – setting this up to look like some sort of mix between live action anime and “Star Trek.” This new image has the pair suited up and ready for battle once again, and we can’t wait to see what’s in store. No word on a start date of any sort for “God of War,” but at least we can look forward to the release of “Pacific Rim” a year from now on July 12, 2013.
Travis also wrote the original outline/treatment for PACIFIC RIM that sold, per this article on deadline.com:
http://www.deadline.com/2010/05/legendary-pictures-re-teams-with-clash-of-the-titans-scribe-on-pacific-rim/
Travis actually wrote Clash of the Titans, not Wrath of the Titans.