Sam Mendes began his film career tackling all-caps serious dramas like American Beauty and Revolutionary Road, but has swerved to franchise blockbusters as of late with the Bond movies Skyfall and Spectre. Now Disney might enlist him to helm its live-action remake of Pinocchio: according to Variety, Mendes is in “early talks” for the project. Previously it was reported that he was in the same stage of negotiations for a new James And The Giant Peach movie, but Variety reports that’s off the table.
While Pinocchio still might not seem like a perfect fit for Mendes, keep in mind that he did direct a London stage production of Charlie And The Chocolate Factory. Disney also recently hired Guy Ritchie to make Aladdin, so its choices have been relatively offbeat. And Pinocchio could be pretty juicy material. Who wouldn’t want to tackle a parable about lying in this day and age?