‘Peter Pan’ May be Getting an Origin Film from Joe Wright

Since the publication of J.M. Barrie's 'the Little White Bird' over a century ago, Peter Pan has held a special place in pop culture as the character has been the subject of plays, movies, TV specials and a terrible, terrible sequel directed by Steven Spielberg that starred Robin Williams. The latest is that Peter Pan is getting a new origin story/prequel, but the good news is it's to be directed (possibly) by Joe Wright.

This info comes from The Hollywood Reporter, who note that this would then be the third 'Pan'-centric project in development. Wright would be doing his Peter Pan origin story for Warner Brothers, while Channing Tatum has one set up at Sony, and Disney is working on 'Peter and the Starcatchers' with 'Hunger Games' director Gary Ross on board. Warner Brothers is said to be making their version a priority, so we could see a race to see who makes a new 'Pan' movie first.

For Wright this move is logical as his 'Hanna' was intended to be his first crossover hit (it didn't catch the public's imagination), while his recent adaptation of 'Anna Karenina' was one of last year's bigger Oscar misfires (though it did win a trophy for best costume design). For Wright, moving to a possible franchise/known quantity is the best way to show he can make a successful film, and the best way to keep working.