While Wanted 2 continues looking like a dicey proposition, with or without Kristen Stewart, director Timur Bekmambetov isn't hard up for other work. As Disney rolls in the riches it made off Alice in Wonderland by adapting a public domain work, Deadline Hollywood says they're eyeing Bekmambetov help them do it again. Though Adam Shankman and Sam Mendes have also been rumored for the job, Disney says Bekmambetov may potentially direct The Great and Powerful Oz, the Wizard of Oz origin story that may have Robert Downey Jr. attached.
And much like they've done to Tim Burton, they may be aiming to keep Bekmambetov in the family-- he's also pitched the studio on an idea for a Jungle Cruise movie, based on the slow-moving theme park attraction of the same name. The idea seemed pretty silly even when it was first floated in 2006, but they probably figure they can only milk one more Pirates movie out of Johnny Depp, so they'll need to come up with some more ideas before too long.
Bekmambetov seems to have a lot of other projects in mind for the moment, from a new take Frankenstein to that pesky Wanted 2, but a giant paycheck from Disney could change all that. Plus I wouldn't mind seeing his take on the Oz material, even if nothing he's directed so far suggests he's up for wrangling the charisma bomb that is Robert Downey Jr. Then again, really, who is?
