Par, helmer to 'Collide' on remake
Sommers to create new 'Worlds'
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Deal was made after Sommers engaged the new Par regime on his take for a film that's proven a valuable library title; it already was the inspiration for the 1998 films "Deep Impact" and "Armageddon."
"When Worlds Collide" also benefits from the momentum of "War of the Worlds," the H.G. Wells novel adaptation Paramount originally made in 1953. Par, which produced the new adaptation in partnership with DreamWorks, will release the Steven Spielberg-directed Tom Cruise starrer on June 29.
Sommers, who last directed "Van Helsing," will begin scripting immediately. In the original, scientists discover that another planet is veering dangerously close to Earth, and they make plans for a small group of humans to leave the planet before the inevitable deadly collision.
"Armageddon" grossed $555 million worldwide, "Deep Impact" $350 million.
"When Worlds Collide" is expected to be ambitious in budget and scale -- the kind of project that is more likely to gain traction at Paramount under the new Brad Grey regime. And Sommers worked with new Par prexy Gail Berman on the short-lived series idea "Transylvania."
Par co-president Tom Jacobson is overseeing the picture, with WMA making Sommers' deal.
