In a sign that not talking about North Korea may be Hollywood’s hottest new trend, Deadline reports that New Regency has scrapped plans for an upcoming thriller set in the reclusive Communist nation. This move comes after major theater chains have dropped The Interview, the North Korea-set comedy that has been at the center of an ongoing hack attack on parent company Sony.
The untitled film was to be a star vehicle for Steve Carell, from a script by The Secret Life Of Walter Mitty’s Steve Conrad. The plot of the film is still (and will remain) unknown, but Gore Verbinski was attached to direct. Considering the critical and commercial reception of Verbinski’s last movie, The Lone Ranger, New Regency may have dodged a bullet here in more ways than one. HAHAHAHAHA GET IT? A BULLET? PRETTY EDGY, RIGHT?
Meanwhile, Team America: World Police is currently streaming on Netflix.