Alejandro González Iñárritu, the man who has given us heavy and dour dramas like Babel, 21 Grams and Biutiful, is in early talks to direct an adaptation of The Jungle Book for Warner Bros. But wait, isn’t Jon Favreau already helming an adaptation of the famous children’s book? Yes, he is, but that project is set up at Disney. That’s right, this is another case of competing films, which seems to be happening more and more these days.
Likely, the WB version will be a more realistic and serious take on the story, while the mouse house will probably opt for a more fun and light-hearted version. Aside from that though, we have no additional details on which direction either project plans to take.
Given Iñárritu’s previous work, it’s hard to see him behind a film like The Jungle Book, even if it does turn out to be a bit of a darker take on the material. This is a man known for delivering hard-hitting dramas that stick with you for a long time after you watch them. Somehow, I don’t see this adaptation falling into that category.
That being said, we shouldn’t dismiss this project just yet. The director has a considerable amount of talent and maybe branching out into new areas is a good idea for him. It’s worked for other filmmakers in the past and I don’t see any reason why we should doubt Iñárritu as he’s delivered some excellent films over the course of his career.
We’ll definitely be keeping our eyes on both of these competing films and will let you know when we hear more. For now though, tell us, which version of The Jungle Book are you more excited for?
