The man who turned around the Thor franchise, Taika Waititi is climbing quickly to the top of the studios-most-wanted list. It's reported that the New Zealand-born writer, director, producer, and actor is attached to write and direct a secret project for Fox Searchlight.
The plot and title are currently unknown for the upcoming Taika Waititi project, but fans are excited to see more of the eccentric director's vision. Joining him in the producer's chair is Jonathan Cavendish and Andy Serkis through their Imaginarium banner. Cavendish and Serkis have produced films such as The Ritual and Cavendish produced the Serkis directed Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle. Shooting for this new mysterious film is schedule to begin this fall.
Fox's film division is undergoing major restructuring beneath their new parent company, Disney. After Fox suffered major losses, Disney CEO Bob Iger announced they would be clearing much of Fox's development slate. However, he did promise that the independent film label, Fox Searchlight, would be allowed to continue their plans and will also make films for the upcoming streaming service Disney Plus.
No word yet on whether Waititi's secret film will find its way there or to the big screen. The director currently has another film with Fox Searchlight, Jojo Rabbit, which is set to hit theaters on October 19. The dark comedy is a World War II-Era satire about a boy whose imaginary friend is Adolf Hitler. The film stars Roman Griffin Davis as Jojo Betzler, Thomasin McKenzie as Elsa Korr, Taika Waititi as Adolf Hitler, Rebel Wilson as Fraulein Rahm, Stephen Merchant as Captain Deertz, Alfie Allen as Finkel, Sam Rockwell as Captain Klenzendorf and Scarlett Johansson Rosie Betzler.
Waititi is most known for developing Marvel Cinematic Universe's Thor from the standard mythical god to the funny and foreboding hero in a Jack Kirby-esque world. Before exploding onto the Marvel stage, Waititi wrote and directed lower budget pieces that allowed him to stretch his irreverent comedy chops while pulling from his childhood experiences. His adventure dramedy Hunt for the Wilderpeople saw favorable reviews, but managed to skate by most casual movie-goers unseen.
Although there is now a TV show adaptation, his original 2014 film What We Do in the Shadows was vastly overlooked until Thor: Ragnarok hit screens in 2017. Marvel Studios recently announced plans for a fourth Thor movie. President Kevin Feige stood on stage at the 2019 San Diego Comic-con and introduced Waititi as the film's director to a grateful crowd. Chris Hemsworth and Tessa Thompson will be returning to their roles. Natalie Portman, to the fans surprise, will also be returning as Jane Foster turned "Mighty Thor". Thor: Love and Thunder is set to release on November 5, 2021.
We can certainly expect to see a lot more of Waititi in the next couple years. He's been announced to pen the films: Thor: Love and Thunder, We're Wolves, Flash Gordon and the Time Bandits television show. He is also directing the announced fourth Thor and Time Bandits pilot as well as an episode of the highly-anticipated Star Wars Disney plus show, The Mandalorian currently in post-production. This news comes to us via Variety