8. Universal Finally Cracks It
While Universal bought the rights – with the Kroffts staying cannily aboard as producers – in 2005, it still took a while for the film to come together.
Back when the company first took aim at the property, it attached the Anchorman team of Will Ferrell and Adam McKay to develop something that would play to Ferrell’s strengths.
It wasn’t really a surprise, given that the pair had a habit of sneaking references to the show into Saturday Night Sketches they’d written.
But scheduling – and yet more budget - issues meant that the early incarnation never gelled, and the studio went through several further attempts, including a flirtation with Robert Rodriguez, who was deciding between Land and an updated version of The Jetsons.
The Jetsons won, though we haven’t seen that film either, which seems to be the director’s habit.
But, undaunted, Universal kept trying, eventually snagging Ferrell back again.
Which brings us almost up to 2007…
Next: Silberling Is Announced
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