Robert Zemeckis may take FLIGHT with the help of Paramount Pictures

Robert Zemeckis and Paramount Pictures are in early discussions on a new live-action film titled, Flight, scripted by John Gatins. This will be a nice change of pace for Zemeckis, who has mainly done motion capture features (too much in my opinion) for the last decade. His last live-action film was Cast Away in 2000 starring Tom Hanks.  

Flight's fictional tale revolves around "a commercial airline pilot named Whip Whitaker. When his plane malfunctions and a crash seems imminent, he saves the day with some heroic flying and manages to land the plane with minimal casualties. He's instantly hailed as a hero, but as an investigation into the cause of the crash unfolds, it becomes clear that he was flying under the influence of drugs and alcohol. The film is the pilot's journey as he is encouraged to wear a hero label he thinks he doesn't deserve, while the pilot's union and airline try to keep the facts under cover because of the high stakes involved."

Gatins had initially planned to direct the film. He just scripted Real Steel and signed on to script the sequel to the DreamWorks film. It makes sense that Zemeckis has been looking into live-action films, especially after Mars Needs Moms tanked at the box office.  Deadline reports that Paramount has become very interested in making a deal with the director, and says the situation could happen very quickly. So quick that production could begin by late summer. I wonder if Zemeckis will cut his price, since Flight is more of a modest character study than some of the director's past films like Back to the Future or Forrest Gump. 

Cast Away was a very powerful film and one that garnered two Oscar-nominations, one for Hanks. I think that it will be interesting to see if Zemeckis makes the leap back to live-action. He really needs a push to get his career back on track in my opinion. 

What are your thoughts?