New take on classic novel on the way…
Filmmaker Paul Greengrass (‘Captain Phillips,’ ‘The Bourne Ultimatum’) is reportedly teaming with Sony Pictures for a new version of George Orwell’s dystopian classic ‘1984.’
Orwell’s cautionary tale, published in 1949, is set in a totalitarian future society called Oceania and follows Winston Smith, a man whose job it is to rewrite newspapers so that the historical record is congruent with the current ideology. When Smith is drawn into a forbidden love affair, he finds the courage to join a secret revolutionary organization called The Brotherhood, dedicated to the destruction of the all-seeing entity known as “Big Brother.”
According to Deadline, ‘Finding Neverland’ scribe James Graham is on board to adapt the screenplay for Greengrass.
Scott Rudin and Gina Rosenblum, who previously collaborated with Greengrass on ‘Captain Phillips’ and on the upcoming Martin Luther King, Jr. drama ‘Memphis,’ are producing.
The book was famously brought to the big screen by Michael Radford back in 1984 with John Hurt playing Winston Smith, and Richard Burton, and Suzanna Hamilton co-starring.