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Over the course of his legendary career, Denzel Washington has cultivated fruitful partnerships with some notable directors, including Spike Lee and Ridley Scott. One of Washington’s most frequent collaborators is Antoine Fuqua. The two teamed up for the crime drama Training Day (for which Washington won Best Actor) and the Equalizer series (which was Washington’s first film franchise). They’ve been hoping to work together again on a new film for Netflix chronicling the story of Carthaginian general Hannibal. Cameras were on track to start rolling later this year, but now the project has hit a bit of a snag and it remains to be seen if it will get off the ground.
According to Deadline, Washington’s Hannibal movie has been “put on pause” over concerns about the budget. As things currently stand, the filmmakers and the studio are working together to iron things out and find a solution to the problems. The outlet notes that “both sides agreed” to put the film on hold. There is no timetable for when pre-production might resume.
Will Denzel Washington’s Hannibal Movie Still Happen?
Considering the subject matter, the Hannibal movie isn’t going to be cheap to make. As a general, Hannibal fought against the Roman Republic in the Second Punic War. So, the film is a historical epic and will likely feature several extravagant battle sequences, as well as other period details for the costumes and production design. All of those elements add up, making the production quite expensive. Deadline doesn’t have any exact financial figures, but it’s telling that the budget is making Netflix pause. It’s another sign that the era of peak streaming is over. During the early days of the streaming wars, Netflix probably wouldn’t balk at any number, but now streamers are trying to be more conscious about money. Andor showrunner Tony Gilroy had to fight Disney to secure the budget for the acclaimed Star Wars show.
Obviously, pausing pre-production isn’t ideal, but there are still encouraging signs here. Being put on hold is a better result than Netflix scrapping the film altogether, indicating that the streamer remains committed to it. Additionally, it sounds like the situation behind the scenes is amicable, as the filmmakers and studio are cooperating with each other to fix the issue. There will still be challenges to overcome; Fuqua undoubtedly had his vision for Hannibal and is now tasked with finding a compromise. But it sounds like everyone involved still wants this film to happen.
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It’s easy to see why Netflix is going the extra mile to get things in line for Hannibal. Washington and Fuqua have a strong track record working together, and Fuqua is coming off of a major box office hit in music biopic Michael. In terms of critical reception, Fuqua’s films have delivered somewhat mixed results, but considering the premise, there’s probably hope Hannibal could emerge as a possible awards player for Netflix. For the better part of a decade, the streamer has had plenty of success landing Best Picture nominations, and Washington headlining a grand historical epic sounds like a recipe for accolades.
It’ll be interesting to see what happens on the Hannibal front. Netflix isn’t afraid to spend big on films it’s confident in; Greta Gerwig’s Chronicles of Narnia reboot is reportedly Netflix’s most expensive movie ever. Netflix has also shown a willingness to bend its stance on theatrical release models; The Adventures of Cliff Booth is getting a holiday season IMAX premiere, and Narnia will have a traditional big-screen run before it debuts on streaming. So there’s an avenue here for Hannibal to make some money for Netflix (on top of eventually drawing subscribers to the service). Hopefully all parties can find a way to keep costs in check and get Hannibal off the ground.
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