Director not allowed to edit own film

The director of the new ‘Judge Dredd’ film has bizarrely not been allowed to edit his own movie, according to a report in The L.A. Times.

by Cassam Looch

They claim Pete Travis, who had finished shooting the film, has been axed early from the still-incomplete project, with writer Alex Garland (‘The Beach’) now running the editing room instead.

Several sources claim Travis was dismissed because producers were unimpressed by the footage he delivered. There are now rumours that the British comic adaptation will have reshoots, with Garland also possibly getting a co-directing credit.

Another mole for The L.A. Times said that while Travis is no longer involved in post-production, he is keeping up with progress “via the internet”.

The news will trouble fans of the comic book character, especially those who endured the disastrous attempt by Sylvester Stallone to bring Judge Dredd to the silver screen in 1995.

The long-delayed update stars Karl Urban (as Dredd), Lena Headey and Olivia Thirlby.

Suffice to say, it’s highly unusual for directors to get the chop mid-way though a movie’s production - especially this late in the day, with shooting virtually complete.

It’s not unprecedented though. George Cukor was sacked while shooting ‘Gone with the Wind’, Anthony Mann during ‘Spartacus’ and Richard Donner mid-way through ‘Superman II’.

As The L.A. Times points out, Steven Spielberg also stepped in the help edit ‘Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time’ last year, with actual director Mike Newell also kept out of the editing room.

‘Judge Dredd’ is currently set for release in 2012.