‘Bambi’ Live-Action Remake Taps Sarah Polley to Direct
Sarah Polley, the actress-turned-Oscar-winning writer behind last year’s Women Talking, is in negotiations with Disney to direct the upcoming live-action remake of Bambi for the studio.
Development on the project is in the very early stages of development, according to Deadline, who broke the news on Polley’s potential involvement, but there is already a preliminary script in place by Micah Fitzerman-Blue and Noah Harpster (Transparent). (We also wouldn’t be surprised if Polley, now an award-winning writer, also gave her own pass to the script and was given credit by the end.) Apparently, the studio is planning on the film to be a musical featuring music by Grammy-winning country singer Kacey Musgraves. Chris and Paul Weitz’s Depth of Field is producing.
This is not the first time we’re hearing about Disney’s intent to make a live-action Bambi reincarnation, as Variety reported in early 2020 that they had hired Geneva Robertson-Dworet (Captain Marvel) and Lindsey Beer (Sierra Burgess is a Loser) to develop a script. Obviously, something wasn’t clicking as new writers were brought on board, a move that isn’t entirely out of the ordinary for these high-profile projects. However, development must be completely stalled at this point given the writers’ strike. It’s unknown when Disney first approached Polley, but it was probably before May 2nd.
The story comes on the heels of Disney debuting their latest live-action remake, The Little Mermaid, in theaters on May 26. The film has grossed $418M worldwide so far. Next up, they have Snow White hitting theaters in March 2024 and Mufasa: The Lion King in July 2024. Production is currently underway on Disney Plus’ Lilo & Stitch reboot, and the studio has just dated Moana for June 2025 ahead of its production start this fall.
Sarah Polley is coming in hot after winning an Oscar for writing Women Talking, which was also the first film she directed in 10 years. She is reportedly developing The Blue Afternoon that Lasted Forever for Paramount Pictures, but not directing (CODA‘s Siân Heder is helming).
Miguel Fernández is a Spanish student that has movies as his second passion in life. His favorite movie of all time is The Lord of the Rings, but he is also a huge Star Wars fan. However, fantasy movies are not his only cup of tea, as authors like Scorsese, Fincher, Kubrick or Hitchcock have been an obsession for him since he started to understand the language of filmmaking. He is that guy who will watch a black and white movie, just because it is in black and white.
