By M&C Movie News Apr 13, 2007, 14:46 GMT
Directors Bryan Singer and Gus Van Sant (‘Good Will Hunting’) are in a race (an unofficial race) to bring the live story of San Francisco supervisor Harvey Milk to the big screen.
Harvey Milk
Milk, the first openly gay elected official in the US was assassinated along with SF mayor George Moscone on November 27, 1978. City supervisor Daniel White was tried and convicted to seven years for the assassination. The light sentence triggered widespread rioting by SF’s gay population.
'The Mayor of Castro Street,’ a book by Randy Shilts was optioned by Warner Independent Pictures 15 years ago. They brought on Singer a couple of years ago but the film has languished until recently as Warner is near a deal with Participant Productions to co-finance and Chris McQuarrie to write final draft script.
McQuarrie wrote script for Singer’s second film ‘The Usual Suspects.’
Craig Zadan (executive producer ‘Empire’ –TV, producer ‘Hairspray’), will produce “Mayor” along with Neil Meron.
"We're seeing the light at the end of a long tunnel," Zadan said. "Warner Independent is pushing us to get the film made right away. Some of it might have to do with the enormous success of 'Brokeback Mountain,' and some of it is passion for the right tone and the story we are telling. Chris has nailed the take, and the goal is to have the script ready so that we can make the movie as soon as Bryan finishes his UA film. We've had tremendous response from actors."
Meanwhile, Van Sant is attached to an untitled Milk script penned by Dustin Lance Black. Curiously, Van Sant was once set to direct “Mayor” even having written a draft script years ago for Warner.
Both Van Sant and Singer are openly gay.
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