The last we heard about Brokeback Mountain and Taking Woodstock director Ang Lee‘s mainstream, big-budget Life of Pi it was in financial limbo. Fox 2000 was looking to reduce the $70 million budget and now Variety reports they have succeeded, as the film will begin shooting early next year.
Based on Yann Martel‘s novel from a script by Finding Neverland‘s David Magee, Life of Pi “tells the story of a boy who is lost at sea for 227 days in a lifeboat with three unusual and increasingly hungry companions — a Bengal tiger named Richard Parker, a hyena, a zebra and an orangutan. He’s left stranded in the tiny boat after the ship carrying his family and his family’s zoo sinks, and must find a way to survive.”
The “large-scale, all-audience” fantasy adventure spent months to find its lead, auditioning over 3,000 men. They landed on newcomer, the 17-year-old Suraj Sharma. Its quite a break, as Sharma is a student, raised by mathematician parents, in Delhi, India. No other casting has been announced but judging from the synopsis, he will be the sole player for most of the runtime. Check out a pic of him below.
Life of Pi begins shooting in Taiwan and India this January in 3D and hits theaters December 14, 2012.
Are you a fan of the book? Are you happy this project is finally getting off the ground?