After years of floating around in Hollywood, 'Passengers' finally found its home at Sony Pictures and in the hands of motion picture chairman Tom Rothman. The film's budget is $120 million. "Jurassic World' actor Chris Pratt and Jennifer Lawrence from "Hunger Games' will star in Sony's next big budget film "Passengers.' Pratt and Lawrence are two space travelers trapped in a malfunctioning spacecraft that is traveling to a distant colony planet. TheWrap reports that production for the science fiction romance film begins in July 2015.
Rothman is not a newbie when it comes to movie production. He was with Fox for 18 years and founded Fox Searchlight, a film distributing company. He is only new at being chairman at Sony Pictures, a job that began in February 2015. According to The Hollywood Reporter (THR), Rothman was reluctant to make a clear decision on the future of 'Passengers.' Factors that weighed in on his decision had to do with the big budget and star power of the film, along with his reputation to uphold.
The film went from being a $35 million budget film at Weinstein Co. to a $65 million film at Warner Bros. It eventually circulated to the doorsteps of Sony Pictures where its budget multiplied to $120 million. Rothman reportedly asked film director Morten Tyldum to cut the budget down to $90 million in June 2015. Eventually, Rothman agreed to production demands and secured 75% of the budget from investors.
Another reason for the behind-the-scenes complications might have to do with the fact that 'Passengers' is currently linked to three different talent agencies. Tyldum is with William Morris Endeavor (WME), Lawrence works with Creative Artists Agency (CAA), and Lawrence works with United Talent Agency (UTA).
"Passengers' stars Chris Pratt as Jim Preston and Jennifer Lawrence as Aurora. It is a romantic science-fiction and adventure film. Jim and Aurora were amongst thousands of others in sleep-induced chambers, until they woke up 90 years before everyone else in the intergalactic journey. Production begins in July 2015. TheWrap reports that other Hollywood megastars Keanu Reeves, Rachel McAdams, and Reese Witherspoon were all considered for roles in the Sony film.
Morten Tyldum ("The Imitation Game') is the director of the film. Jon Spaihts is the screenwriter. The producers of the film are Stephen Hamel, Michael Maher, Ori Marmur, Neal H. Moritz, and Lynwood Spinks. The casting director is Francine Maisler.
Lawrence won an Oscar amongst many other awards for her performance in the 2013 film "Silver Linings Playbook.' She became famous for her role as Katniss Everdeen in the "Hunger Games' movie franchise. She has also appeared in Marvel's "X-Men' movies as the blue shape-shifting mutant Mystique.
Pratt gained recent international recognition with the role of Velociraptor trainer Owen Grady in "Jurassic World.' He rose to fame with his role as Andy Dwyer in the popular television series "Parks and Recreation.' He also played the part of Peter Quill in "Guardians of the Galaxy.'
