Africa, the feature about paleo-archaeologist Richard Leaky’s battle with ivory poachers in Kenya that was to be directed by Angelina Jolie and star her husband Brad Pitt, is said to be on shaky ground. The feature was being produced through David Ellison’s Skydance Productions from a script by Oscar winner Eric Roth.
Tons of development money was poured into this project over years. Sources said that Ellison was going to put in 50% and then pulled back and said Skydance would put in 25%. One of the complicating factors that contributed to where the film is now, is the role that the love story would play in the movie. Jolie always intended for the love story to be only a part of the movie but Skydance wanted the love story to become the centerpiece of the film. That’s not the film that Jolie wanted to make. After that, Skydance halved its commitment, though sources on that side denied Skydance was ever in for more than 25%, the same commitment that Paramount Pictures made to the financing equation. Regardless, the budget is at $110M, and people are blinking. With a sweeping epic — and budget — of this nature, the sides are at odds now as to how to move forward. This has been a passion project for Ellison for many years, and they are now reaching out to other studios to find a partner………
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One Response to “Angelina Jolie’s ‘Africa’ Project On Shaky Ground”
Thank you for sharing these details so freely. You ought to think about writing a book.