Key Takeaways:
– Sony Pictures acquired a S. Craig Zahler spec script, The Big Stone Grid back in 2011.
– The high-concept suspense-thriller has been likened to Seven and the Marathon Man.
– Zahler is now set to direct the movie, a decade after the initial inception.
– Zahler’s hiatus from directing was due to failed funding for his Hug Chickenpenny project.
– Ridley Scott is reportedly preparing to direct an adaptation of Zahler’s western novel.
After a decade-long journey, the highly anticipated screenplay, “The Big Stone Grid,” by renowned writer and director S. Craig Zahler is finally moving into production. This comes after several attempts to set the project in motion with different directors, including Michael Mann and Pierre Morel.
A Decade-Long Journey
Sony Pictures initially acquired “The Big Stone Grid” in 2011, but failed attempts to kick-start the project saw it transition to Lotus Entertainment four years later. Despite the change of hands, production stagnated further.
Once again the project has landed back into familiar hands. According to World of Reel, Zahler is now set to take the helm and direct the movie himself, marking a significant shift in the trajectory of this script. This comes after Zahler’s six-year hiatus from directing, prompted by a lack of funding for his past project, Hug Chickenpenny.
The Band’s Back Together
Zahler, known for his thought-provoking and genre-bending work such as Bone Tomahawk, Brawl in Cell Block 99, and Dragged Across Concrete, will now lead the project that was once his brainchild. Zahler’s dark, introspective style seems to be just the missing ingredient that this elusive screenplay needs.
Moreover, Zahler has shown his credibility in blending crime and horror genres effectively in his other works such as Asylum Blackout and Puppet Master: The Littlest Reich, enhancing excitement for what’s to come in “The Big Stone Grid.”
Plot & Comparisons
“The Big Stone Grid” is described as a high-concept, hard-edged suspense thriller. It centers around two metropolitan detectives engrossed in a deadly cat-and-mouse game with serial killers forced into a life of crime. Early comparisons liken the desperate pursuit to cult classics Seven and Marathon Man, with a unique twist of crime noir intertwined with horror elements.
Looking Ahead
In addition to his current venture, Zahler also seems to have stirred interest for his western novels. Ridley Scott, a name synonymous with iconic cinema, is gearing up to direct an adaptation of Zahler’s Western novel “Wraiths of the Broken Land.”
As Zahler fans anxiously await the result of this decade-long movie-creation journey, his unique touch combined with an intense, intricate plot promises to deliver film that could potentially redefine the crime-horror genre. “The Big Stone Grid” offers a fresh perspective in a crowded movie landscape, and under Zahler’s direction, it seems like the long wait may well be worth it.
