For a while, it looked like Michael Winterbottom would be the man to direct the film once called Russ & Roger Go Beyond, but that old issue of creative differences reared its head and he left last November. A potential replacement has now popped up, with Once and Begin Again's John Carney seriously considering taking it on.
Simpsons and Saturday Night Live alumnus Christopher Cluess wrote the screenplay, which is currently without a title and focuses on the partnership between cult movie director Russ Meyer and film critic Roger Ebert, leading to the infamous Beyond The Valley Of The Dolls. Winterbottom worked on a rewrite with along with Alan Partridge duo Neil and Rob Gibbons, but there's no indication as to whether his version will now see the screen regardless of who directs.
Having decided to work together on the film, Meyer would eventually regard as his masterpiece, they hammered out a treatment in three days, a first draft in three weeks, and the finished screenplay in six. Ebert proudly called Beyond "a camp sexploitation horror musical that ends in quadruple ritual murder and a triple wedding". It was released, to raised eyebrows, as one of the few major studio films with an X rating in the States and became a profitable hit, sparking an enduring friendship between the two men. Will Ferrell remains attached to star as Meyer with Josh Gad in the Ebert role.
For all his interest, Carney is still just in discussions the moment. On the more concrete film release front, his latest, Sing Street, will be out on May 20.