Scarlett Johansson’s Next Movie Will Be The Most Expensive Of Its Type Ever To Be Made
Scarlett Johansson is reportedly circling the lead role of an upcoming Netflix rom com directed by Nancy Meyers with a staggering budget of between $130 and $150 million.
Hey, remember how Netflix was blaming all of us for its financial woes because of password sharing? Well, the world’s biggest streamer is reportedly showing how much fiscal responsibility they’ve learned by giving a $130 to $150 million budget to, of all things, a romantic comedy. Currently known only as Paris Paramount, the rom com has a number of big names interested, including Scarlett Johansson and Penelope Cruz.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Nancy Meyers — who has been on a feature directorial hiatus since 2015’s The Intern — will helm the feature. Along with Scarlett Johansson and Penelope Cruz, other stars interested in the flick include Owen Wilson and Michael Fassbender.
In case you’re thinking the inflated budget is a sign of some kind of sci-fi/fantasy twist, think again. Not only does the story sound set firmly in the real world, there are elements of autobiography.
The part Scarlett Johansson could wind up playing is of a writer-director who falls in love with a producer, splits with him, but then later must find a way to work with him on a big budget film. THR notes this story mirrors Meyers’ own life in that she married producer Charles Shyer, with whom she made a number of successful films including 1980’s Private Benjamin which scored her and Shyer a screenwriter Oscar nomination.
If the report of a $130 to $150 million budget proves accurate, it will make Paris Paramount the most expensive romantic comedy to ever come out of Hollywood. Whether it’s Scarlett Johansson or Penelope Cruz in the lead role, neither of them will suffer a tiny pay day.
To put these numbers in perspective, consider Denis Villeneuve’s Dune: Part One, an epic science fiction film filled with stunning practical and digital effects and filmed across three different countries on two separate continents. It starred Oscar Isaac, Dave Bautista, Jason Momoa, Timothee Chalamet, Javier Bardem, Josh Brolin, Zendaya, Rebecca Ferguson, and Stellan Skarsgard. Its production budget was $165 million, vs. $130 to $150 million for a romantic comedy whose greatest visual effects demands will likely have to do with CGI-scrubbing off tattoos in sex scenes.
To be fair, naming a high price tag for a movie is not something new for Nancy Meyers, and she tends to make back the money the studios spend and then some, which probably has something to do with why Scarlett Johansson and other A-listers are interested in Paris Paramount. Starting all the way back in 2000, Meyers’ films What Women Want, Something’s Gotta Give, The Holiday, and It’s Complicated all commanded budgets between $70 and $85 million.
There still isn’t too much known about Paris Paramount including whether Scarlett Johansson will wind up signing up for the feature. As soon as we know, we’ll make sure you know.
