Rumor Patrol: J.J. Abrams Teaming With 'Host' Director Bong Joo-ho

Geektastic filmmaker J.J. Abrams certainly likes to keep himself busy.  He may have yet another film project in the works - one that involves the unique talents of Korean director Bong Joo-ho.

/Film is reporting that Abrams has held several meetings with Bong and that the pair are collaborating on a new movie that Bong will direct and Abrams would produce - understandably, given that Abrams will likely be busy directing both Super 8 and Star Trek 2 over the next year and a half.

Bong Joon-ho is best known in the U.S. for his 2006 monster movie The Host, which left audiences impressed with its blend of classic horror elements, personal family drama, and incongruous physical comedy gags.  While it received only a limited theatrical release here in the states, The Host remains the highest-grossing film of all time in South Korea.

This new potential directorial project for Joon-ho would most likely be shot in the U.S. - a first for the foreign auteur.  Abrams' name carries a fair amount of weight with studio executives nowadays so his involvement would assure that the film has a larger budget than that of Joon-ho's previous movies.  The FX work will likely be an improvement on those seen in The Host (see below) as well.

The Host movie Bon Joon-ho image

The union of these two filmmaker's sensibilities could be something to behold.  Abrams is generally regarded foremost as a sci-fi/action director (see Mission: Impossible 3 and Star Trek), though he avoids sacrificing character development for the sake of flashy and/or explosive set pieces, a la Michael Bay.  While Joon-ho's work tends to be darker and edgier than Abrams', he too is well-regarded as being a more personal storyteller.

Could the two be working on a new Cloverfield-like project?  That would be the most obvious guess, given the directors' respective backgrounds.  Joon-ho's films tend to have stronger political overtones than those of Abrams' so it will be interesting see how the two balance out one another.

Here's hoping this rumor turns out to be true - does it sound like a promising collaboration to you?

Source: /Film

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