Brian Damage
11-24-2006, 11:16 AM
Critics may have hated "The Da Vinci Code," but it seems that screenwriter Akiva Goldsman is getting big bucks to return for the conspiracy-minded sequel.
Veteran LA Weekly and DeadlineHollywoodDaily.com reporter Nikki Finke is claiming that Goldsman will receive $4 million to retrofit Dan Brown's "Angels & Demons" as a sequel to this summer's "The Da Vinci Code."
Finke claims that this will be a record haul for a pure screenwriting gig, as Goldsman won't do double-duty as a producer on the Sony Pictures and Imagine Entertainment release.
"Angels & Demons" was written before "Da Vinci," but the production, slated for a Dec. 12, 2008 release, isn't being conceived of as a prequel. The plot of Brown's novel finds Robert Langdon (Tom Hanks in the first film), attempting to make sense of a series of murders that may involve the Vatican and the shady Illuminati.
Despite a RottenTomatoes.com score of 76 percent "rotten," "The Da Vinci Code" has taken in more than $750 million worldwide, making it the second highest grossing global pic of 2006, behind only "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest."
In addition to "The Da Vinci Code," Goldsman's writing credits include an Oscar for "A Beautiful Mind." He didn't win Oscars for his scripts for "Lost in Space," "Batman & Robin" and "Batman Forever."
Veteran LA Weekly and DeadlineHollywoodDaily.com reporter Nikki Finke is claiming that Goldsman will receive $4 million to retrofit Dan Brown's "Angels & Demons" as a sequel to this summer's "The Da Vinci Code."
Finke claims that this will be a record haul for a pure screenwriting gig, as Goldsman won't do double-duty as a producer on the Sony Pictures and Imagine Entertainment release.
"Angels & Demons" was written before "Da Vinci," but the production, slated for a Dec. 12, 2008 release, isn't being conceived of as a prequel. The plot of Brown's novel finds Robert Langdon (Tom Hanks in the first film), attempting to make sense of a series of murders that may involve the Vatican and the shady Illuminati.
Despite a RottenTomatoes.com score of 76 percent "rotten," "The Da Vinci Code" has taken in more than $750 million worldwide, making it the second highest grossing global pic of 2006, behind only "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest."
In addition to "The Da Vinci Code," Goldsman's writing credits include an Oscar for "A Beautiful Mind." He didn't win Oscars for his scripts for "Lost in Space," "Batman & Robin" and "Batman Forever."