Coraci discusses AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 DAYS

AROUND THE WORLD director talks about developments on his latest project

By Jennifer H. Tomooka     October 11, 2002
Source: SCI FI Wire

Director Frank Coraci (THE WATERBOY, THE WEDDING SINGER) recently discussed his latest project, an adaptation of Jules Verne's AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 DAYS, with SCI FI Wire. Coraci stated that his version will expand on the SF themes and gadgetry present in the original story.

"The movie does take place at the turn of the century, and I decided instead of just making Phileas Fogg an Englishman that's very wealthy, in this version he's an inventor," Coraci explains. "That was inspired by the idea that Jules Verne was way ahead of his time, so our Phileas Fogg is a man way ahead of his time, living in a Victorian era when people didn't want to accept big change."

Coraci also revealed that Captain Nemo, a character from Verne's 20,000 LEAGUES UNDER THE SEA will make an appearance in AROUND THE WORLD. The meeting between Phileas, Passepartout and Nemo has allowed Coraci to construct Nemo's famous sub, the Nautilus.

"We thought it would be fun to do that, and we've created this amazing version of what we think the Nautilus looked like," says Coraci. "Of course, a lot of it is going to be special effects because we're going to create this 300-foot sub. We looked at every possible design, because there are so many Nautiluses, and we created this one that moves sort of like an animal. So it sort of slinks like an eel or a snake. We've created this bizarre organic version of it, so a lot of that is going to be done with special effects."

Jackie Chan is set to star in the role of Passepartout. The role of Phileas has not yet been cast. Production is set to begin in January 2003, with a Christmas 2003 release.

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