Fox 2000/Zadan & Meron producing Hans Christian Andersen movie musical w/ Ansel Elgort

[jacobsnchz14]

Posted: 2/28/18 at 2:20pm

http://deadline.com/2018/02/ansel-elgort-hans-christian-andersen-musical-wicked-stephen-schwartz-craig-zadan-neil-meron-fox-2000-david-magee-1202305862/

Fox 2000 emerged from a bidding battle that resulted in a substantial seven-figure deal for an untitled original musical fantasy about Hans Christian Andersen. It’s the first original musical from composter/lyricist Stephen Schwartzsince Wicked, and it will be scripted by David Magee, the Life of Pi scribe whose latest is the Rob Marshall-directed Mary Poppins Returns which Disney releases Christmas Day. The film will be produced by Craig Zadan and Neil Meron, the team behind Chicago and the upcoming Jesus Christ Superstar Live! which they are producing with Marc Platt. Schwartz will also be producer. Magee is exec producer with Mark Nicholson, who runs development and production for Zadan/Meron Productions.

Ansel Elgort is circling and is expected to become attached, sources said. He’s not only an actor but also a musical artist who is a trained singer and dancer. The musical isn’t a biopic; it was pitched as a four quadrant epic musical fantasy in which Andersen as a young man gets trapped in a world of his own imagination. And as Hans searches for a way back to reality, he comes face-to-face with characters from his own fairy tales, nearly all of whom try to trap him in their world forever. The ambition is a musical Harry Potter, a potential movie franchise that can later translate to a Broadway musical like Frozen.

[finebydesign]

Posted: 2/28/18 at 2:59pm

Isn't this "My Fairytale"?  Odd Schwartz would go in with a score and no book.  

[jpbran]

Posted: 2/28/18 at 3:37pm

I'm sure the unprecedented staying power of Greatest Showman's grosses moved this to the front burner.