Selma director Ava DuVernay has called time on her search for Intelligent Life, according to The Hollywood Reporter, as DreamWorks begins scouting for a new director to take the reins of its nascent sci-fi pic.
As THR confirms, Star Wars actress Lupita Nyong’o remains attached to the feature, which was originally dreamed up by Jurassic World helmer Colin Trevorrow – also bound for the Star Wars universe via 2019’s Episode IX – and frequent collaborator Derek Connolly.
Pulling elements from Contact and other sci-fi classics of old, DreamWorks’ Intelligent Life centers on a United Nations employee who presides over a crack team of astronomers who monitor outer space and all of the cosmic mysteries therein. All of their knowledge of the stars is put to the sword, however, when they make contact with an impossibly beautiful woman who may or may not be an alien.
Indeed, it’s one of the many high-profile sci-fi flicks currently incubating in development. Later this year, we’ll see two of the biggest stars unite when Passengers brings together Chris Pratt and Jennifer Lawrence, while there’s also Seth Rogen-led comedy The Something and Bad Robot’s God Particle. It’s an exciting time for the genre, to be sure, continuing a streak that stretches back to Gravity, Interstellar and last year’s The Martian.
Scheduling conflicts may have cut DuVernay’s search for Intelligent Life short, but DreamWorks’ feature continues on. With an actress of Lupita Nyong’o’s calibre still on board, expect the studio to zero in on a replacement before long.
