Is anyone else getting a wicked sense of deja vu?
Not for the first time, fate seems to have conspired against ‘Gambit’. The ‘X-Men’ spin-off has to date lost no fewer than three directors, which Rupert Wyatt, Doug Liman, and most recently Gore Verbinski, having all departed the project over the last two years. Despite this turbulent history, the film actually seemed to be making some measure of progress under Verbinski, despite having been caught in development hell practically from the moment it was announced, to the point that it was reportedly set to go before the cameras in March of this year for release in February 2019.
Verbinskis’s exit two weeks ago was followed shortly by word that the film had been delayed, moving to summer from a February release. It’s particularly difficult to gauge whether that call was made before or after Verbinski made his decision. With the film’s history to date being what it is, a delay would hardly be surprising, even if it hadn’t just lost its third director. In fact, the only surprise is that Fox apparently has enough confidence in this thing to toss it into the box office free-for-all that is midsummer.
And now we’ve learned (via a report on Omega Underground) that ‘Gambit’ has been bumped from its planned production date. Again, not exactly surprising. The film was, as noted above, meant to film in March of this year in New Orleans. Frankly, this too is unsurprising. After all, if Fox has found a new director, they have yet to announce it publicly. And even if they hired someone tomorrow, I can’t imagine any director wanting to start filming within a month of signing on. Presumably, a new start date will be selected once a new director is found.
Of course, that’s assuming that nothing else (like, say, Fox’s pending merger with Disney) derails the project…
As of this time, Channing Tatum and Lizzy Caplan remain attached to star in ‘Gambit’. The film is currently targeted for a June 7, 2019 release.
Be sure to check back with ScienceFiction.com for more on ‘Gambit’ and other upcoming ‘X-Men’ films as it becomes available!
