Ridley Scott and Hugh Jackman are taking their Treasure Island movie to Sony, which is in talks to acquire the package from the duo.
Scott will direct from a script by Adolescence co-creator Jack Thorne, with Jackman starring in the feature based on Robert Louis Stevenson’s work.
Stevenson tale, first published in the 1880s in serialized form and then as a novel, told of a young cabin boy named Jim who finds himself in possession of a treasure map. Soon, he is on a hunt for lost treasure, dealing with Long John Silver, a one-legged cook who is secretly a pirate and who leads a murderous mutiny. All parties find themselves ashore a deserted tropical island fighting for their lives and for the treasure.
The book has grabbed Hollywood’s attention going back to the town’s silent era. Jackie Cooper and Lionel Barrymore starred in the first talkie version in 1934 and Disney made a version in 1950. Heck, even Kermit the Frog and Miss Piggy got into the act in 1996 with Muppet Treasure Island, which featured Tim Curry as Silver. And in 2002, Walt Disney Animation took Jim into space with Treasure Planet.
Scott will produce the new version with Michael Pruss, via Scott Free. He is next in theaters with Dog Stars, based on the post-apocalyptic novel by Peter Heller. The film arrives on Aug. 28 from 20th Century Studios and stars Jacob Elordi. The filmmaker is repped by CAA and Gang Tyre.
Jackman recently starred in A24’s The Death of Robin Hood, as well as The Sheep Detectives for Amazon MGM Studios. He previously played the pirate Blackbeard in Pan, the 2015 Peter Pan prequel from Warner Bros. He is repped by WME and Sloane Offer.