After indefinitely postponing ROBOPOCALYPSE, Steven Spielberg announced that his next film would be AMERICAN SNIPER, based on the book by Chris Kyle. Bradley Cooper was even set to star and produce the movie. But, news came down today that Spielberg has dropped out of directing the movie and is taking Dreamworks with him.
Deadline says that a studio completely dropping out of a project like this is unorthodox as they would usually seek another filmmaker to replace the departed director. But, Steven Spielberg is not your average director. His close ties to Dreamworks uniquely link him to both sides of the project.
Bradley Cooper can still keep the project alive by taking the package featuring him as producer and star to another studio and get the film made. Warner Bros. can now do what they will with the project. The question now is what the heck will Spielberg’s next film be? Does the director have another project we don’t know about or is he just becoming pickier in his old age?