Into the Script Of "Into the Woods"

I just found someone online who says* he got the chance to read a recent version of the Into The Woods movie script (from February) and posted the changes/differences to the Broadway play.

I know a lot of people feel that Into the Woods is holy ground (almost) and are going to have problems with ANY changes that happen but please remember these things:

1) A live show/stage musical/Broadway production is a COMPLETELY different medium to a movie. Changes must be made in order to change mediums and not kill the property (ie story).

This, which looks fantastic on the stage from the audience perspective...

...will look mighty tacky on screen if they film it as is.

2) Remember that the script is being carefully reworked by the original writer for the Broadway play, James Lapine - meaning that you know he's going to fight to keep his work - and story - looking the best it possibly can as it transitions to a movie.

3) Lapine has written multiple award winning musicals AND books (so he understands the difference in writing as a playwright and writing as an author and knows he will have to approach a screenplay differently again) and he's interested in telling the best story he can, via whatever medium he's working in.

3) There are movie musical greats working with him - they know what works on screen for a musical and what doesn't.

4) Sondheim, who composed Into the Woods, is also composing for the movie - and altering and layering and scoring - all with the same mentality as the writer: he wants his work to look/sound better than ever.

*This is from a blog of a guy named "Phil" who works (worked?) in primetime TV and is somewhat "insider connected". I don't know him personally but a quick little bit of research would say that what he claims is likely true. :)

Here's the intro from Phil's post a couple of weeks ago:

So I’ve read it.
I’ve read the Into the Woods film script (well, at least a draft from February)... Suffice to say I’m immensely happy with the direction they are going in and the casting so far has been great.

If you do not want to know anything about the movie before it hits the screen HERE THERE BE SPOILERS.

If you adore the Broadway play and know you're going to be upset by any changes (remember seeing the points on a page will be very different to watching it as a movie) HERE THERE BE SPOILERS!

For this reason I will post the rest after the jump...
 ✒ ✒ ✒ ✒ ✒ (click the "Read more" link below this line) ✒ ✒ ✒ ✒ ✒ 

"Into The Woods" Movie - Revised Cast List (so far...)

Fan made poster for Disney's live action "Into The Woods" movie

Screenplay read from late 2012

OK - this was a toughie to pin down! Information is flying fast and furiously around the net about this right now and things are in flux with a whole lot of TBCs (To Be Confirmed) among the names.

I kept finding conflicting information in supposedly reliable news sources so have done my best to sort all the inconsistencies out and make a list of exactly(ish) where things stand - as of writing this post, that is. This is as accurate a list as I can construct without additional secret insider info to help me out. (It is more than possible there will be news between the time I post this and the time you read it right now!)

I used an old screenplay reading list from the end of last year and have updated a bunch of changes (scribbling with a very uncooperative mouse! - not a real mouse! - though that would be cool if I could find a mouse who could hold a pen and wanted to help...).

Checks [√] mean the name is confirmed. Dots [•] mean they're TBC (to be confirmed) and are "in talks" (in biz-speak, this means they're almost sure these actors will do it but need to iron out the fine print of the contract before they're confirmed as "in"). Question marks [?] mean we have no idea (yet!) who the character will be played by at this time.

I left the names of the original screenplay readers there, just in case they're also "in talks" but haven't announced it publicly yet.

Revised cast list as of June 24, 2013 incl. TBC

In case you didn't notice, I've added in a couple of extra bits of information on the songs, the script and the Director of Photography (DP). You should be able to click on the image to see it larger (or do "view original image" and that should give you the bigger size), in case the mouse-scribble is too difficult to decipher.

Rob Marshall directing Disney's live action "Into The Woods"

Since that's a ton of info to take in for one post, and things are still very jello like with how a group cast photo will eventually look, (so VERY curious as to whom Red will be!) I'm going to leave you with just this for now.

Oh - and in case you didn't know - Bernadette Peters has been vocal in her approval of all the confirmed and TBC cast so far! In lieu of actually having her on board, I'd say that's the next, best thing. :)

Disney has announced the release date for the movie as Christmas Day (December 25) 2014.