According to Variety, the director of Devil Wears Prada, David Frankel, will be at the helm of the New Line Cinema drama Collateral Beauty starring Will Smith.
Allan Loeb (Just Go With It, Rock of Ages) wrote the script which centers on a tragic event that causes a business man (Smith) to go on a downward spiral. His friends work out a plan to break him out of his depression which ends in a way they did not anticipate.
Likely Story’s Michael Sugar and Bard Dorros are producing alongside Loeb while PalmStar Media CEO Kevin Frakes and Anthony Bergman are executive producing.
Alfonso Gomez-Rejon (Me, Earl, and the Dying Girl) was originally attached to the project but left because of creative differences. Hugh Jackman was also in talks to star but dropped out due to scheduling conflicts.
Frankel has directed comedic projects such as Hope Springs and The Big Year but he made a name for himself directing episodes of Sex and the City and Band of Brothers before directing the hit film The Devil Wears Prada which earned Meryl Streep a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress.
The film is set to be released in 2016.