Gore Verbinski Examines the Online Fantasy World
The fictional online lifestyle is becoming fodder for a new film to be written by Steven Knight (Eastern Promises) for director Gore Verbinksi (Pirates of the Caribbean). Universal Studios acquired rights to a Wall Street Journal article from 2007 reporting on the problems one married couple had when the husband became addicted to his fantasy life according to Variety.
Alexandra Alter’s article featured the 53 year-old diabetic chain smoker who spent as many as 20 hours a day living through his Second Life avatar who was buff in appearance. The man’s wife attended support group meetings for those with spouses addicted to the online life and their marriage nearly dissolved.
The fantasy worlds have been the subject of documentaries, including Second Skin, but this is the first dramatic movie to touch on the subject. It’s part of Verbinski’s recently signed first look deal with Universal. He’s also shooting Bioshock, based on the video game plus producing The Host, a remake of the Korean thriller.