It’s been a long time coming but Sony appears ready to commit to a sequel to The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo and the big-screen return of punkette hacker Lisbeth Salander. It was announced on Monday that Sony is pushing forward on The Girl in the Spider’s Web and has officially dated the project to hit screens on October 5, 2018.
This comes after years of rumors and speculation on the status of the franchise, as well as a makeover. Don’t Breathe‘s Fede Alvarez will step into the director’s chair, taking over for David Fincher, who helmed the 2011 feature. Stars Rooney Mara, who earned her first Oscar nomination for her breakout lead performance in the first film, and Daniel Craig have exited as well – as of yet, no official casting announcements have been made thought The Hollywood Reporter states the Alvarez is currently meeting with contenders for the choice role of Salander.
Trent Reznor, who composed the score for 2011’s The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo and won an Oscar for scoring Fincher’s 2010 film The Social Network, is also unlikely to repeat as his association appeared contingent on Fincher’s return.
The origin of the project started, famously, with the late Stieg Larsson’s original book series, itself the source of a popular Swedish franchise which starred Noomi Rapace as Lisbeth. The Girl in the Spider’s Web continued the Millennium series with David Lagercrantz taking over Larsson’s writing duties following his passing. Steven Knight adapted the screenplay with Alvarez and Jay Basu. The story follows Salander and investigative journalist Mikael Blomkvist as they again see themselves in a tangled web of spies, cybercriminals and corrupt governments.
Columbia president Sandford Panitch officially confirmed the news at the London Book Fair. In a statement, Panitch stated, “In all of contemporary literature, Lisbeth Salander is completely sui generis – probably one of the greatest female literary characters of all time in my view. Modern punk defiance personified, she is unforgettable in every incarnation, truly one of the most compelling characters we’ve seen in recent years. David Lagercrantz’s brilliant work in continuing this remarkable series honors Stieg Larsson’s masterpiece. We at Sony are so honored to be part of this series with Yellowbird, and we’re so excited to be making an original film of The Girl in the Spider’s Web. Fede Alvarez is the perfect choice to direct. Fede is an amazing director with a unique vision of the world. In particular, his talent and skill in creating psychological intensity will bring Lisbeth Salander back into popular movie culture with a roar.”
We will stay tuned to the latest developments.
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