The World War II-set movie that the Challengers director was plotting for DC will “no longer move forward,” sources told The Hollywood Reporter. Colin Farrell was signed on to wear the titular hero’s uniform after Guadagnino’s Queer star Daniel Craig dropped out of the project in February. It’s a surprising decision considering the film was reportedly actively casting for Sgt. Rock’s Nazi-fighting Easy Company, with Challengers‘ Mike Faist potentially lined up for a role. The role of a female French officer had apparently also been cast, but THR doesn’t specify who was supposed to take it on. The project also boasted a reportedly strong script from Challengers and Queer writer Justin Kuritzkes.
It’s unclear exactly why DC staged their campaign against the film—apart from it being a rather odd marriage of auteur filmmaker and basic, shoot ’em up comic, that is—but THR intercepted a few different communications that could partly explain the studio’s reasoning. One source suggested the project’s outdoor shoots were too difficult to schedule, while another raised the issue of Guadagnino’s bona fides. He may know how to make a damn good arthouse film, but he’s completely untested in the realm of superhero blockbusters. “Higher-ups may have wavered in their confidence,” the source reported.
Thankfully, Guadagnino still has multiple projects like After The Hunt with Andrew Garfield, Ayo Edebiri, and Julia Roberts, Separate Rooms with Challengers star Josh O’Connor and Léa Seydoux, a largely silent Lord Of The Flies adaptation, and his American Psycho remake waiting for him back at home. Still, that’s one visionary filmmaker-turned-DC helmer project down. We’ll see if Mike Flanagan’s Clayface meets a similar fate in the coming months.
