Norton taking leap of 'Faith' as director
"Stuart and I went to Yale together, and always talked of working together when we were roommates in New York," said Norton. "We fixed on this script, a romantic comedy set in New York, about a young priest and rabbi who are best friends and both fall in love with the same girl, who they've known since childhood." The priest, who'll be played by Norton, can't marry, and his rabbi buddy, who can, also finds the woman off-limits because she's not Jewish.
"It's a great romantic triangle in the 'Philadelphia Story' mode, capped with a universal pool of humor common to the experiences a lot of people our age have, especially those brought up getting religious pressure from parents," Norton said.
While Norton and Blumberg always hoped to form a lasting film partnership, they wanted an experienced hand and turned to Koch, who bonded with Norton on "Primal Fear," the film that earned Norton an Oscar nom. The three honed the script and were relieved to see it snatched up by Columbia, because exec Michael Costigan --- who met Norton on "The People vs. Larry Flynt" --- had been giving him script notes right along.
Whether Norton directs depends on his acting schedule. He'll likely first team with Brad Pitt for David Fincher in Fox 2000's "The Fight Club," a pairing first disclosed in Dish (Daily Variety, Aug. 19). The film's about a group of disenfranchised youngsters who need to have the hell beat out of them to feel anything. Said Norton: "I'm dying to do that with David and, hopefully, Brad. It's a piece that touches such a fantastic generational nerve." He hopes to follow with "Faith" in the fall. Norton's repped by ICM's Ed Limato and managed by Brian Swardstrom.
FROM BUZZKILL TO MUPPET MODE: Hollywood might want to brace itself for the emergence of Dave Sheridan. The former MTV "Buzzkill" host recently made a deal with Henson Prods. to create a Muppet pic in which he'll star with the puppet Animal. Now, he's shopping the feature "Stuart," a film he's co-written with "The Simpsons" scribe Larry Doyle, based on a hapless character he created in a short film. The film will be directed by "Crumb" docu director Terry Zwigoff. It's about a Texan who lives in a trailer and who, after driving a female acquaintance to the mall, misunderstands when she casually mentions something about love and becomes obsessed with her. The producers are Mike Judge, Richard Linklater, Mike Borman and 3 Arts Entertainment.
Sheridan's managers, Daniel Rappaport and Michael Rotenberg, will distribute the script this weekend, after having already teased buyers with two short reels, one about "Stuart," the other about Sheridan's dizzying array of character creations. His comedy is a fairly unique mix between a sitcom and the show "Cops," in that his characters often get arrested for real, with his cameras rolling the entire time. He's been arrested four times "for the sake of comedy," he says. Stunts included tying up a friend and bringing him to a USC pep rally, claiming he was a UCLA bandmember, and watching the crowd take turns on him with padded "therapy" bats.
Sheridan has several stunts he hopes to execute in a TV special. He'd like to raid a Civil War reenactment, and just before the troops begin blasting, run on the battlefield dressed as Lincoln, with a friend dressed as Gen. Lee. They'll embrace and declare peace. He's got an even higher aspiration, though. "I want to go dressed up as a giant pinata, and run across the border with other Mexicans, get caught, and get beaten by customs agents until all the candy and toys fall out," he revealed.
WEB SPEC: Most of the time, when a script is featured on the Internet, it's usually to the horror of the screenwriter and studio involved in the project. But Ted Mann, the Emmy-nominated former "NYPD Blue" scribe, has posted his spec script "Al the Bigot," hoping to use the Web as a sales tool. Mann, who just pacted with NBC Studios to develop the series "True Detectives," posted in its entirety his script about the ultimate bigot, who crosses paths with the world's wealthiest black woman. It can be accessed by www.thegrid.net/drmutt. "It's meant to be read by actors, agents, D-people, and perhaps real bigots," said Mann, who also wrote the Bill Veeck movie that will topline Bill Murray and be directed by John McNaughton. UTA's Jeremy Zimmer reps him.
