Will Smith In Conversation: Watch Actor Talk ‘I Am Legend 2’; Perils Of Fame & Ambitions To Teach Film – Red Sea Film Festival
02.12.2023 - 21:11
/ deadline.com
Will Smith has revealed that the development of I Am Legend 2 is moving at pace, with both him and Michael B. Jordan on board and a first script delivered.
News of the reboot of the post-apocalyptic action thriller blockbuster – which grossed more $585 million back in 2007 – broke earlier this year when I Am Legend writer Avika Goldsman re-teamed with Warner Bros. with a fresh first-look deal.
Smith told an In Conversation at Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea Film Festival on Saturday evening that he was due to have a call with Jordan the next day.
“I have a call with Michael B. Jordan tomorrow. We’re really close. I am probably giving up too much information…the script just came in,” he said.
Smith also explained how the production planned to get around the fact his character, U.S. army virologist Robert Neville, died in the original film by reverting to an alternate ending which appeared in a special DVD edition released in 2008.
“We’re going with the mythology of the DVD version where my character lives and I can’t tell you anymore,” he said.
Will Smith gives ‘I Am Legend 2’ Update & Explains How He Plans To Resurrect His Dead Character Robert Neville #RedSeaIFF23 pic.twitter.com/C9JbM6No9I
Smith was talking to a young, local crowd of fans and aspiring filmmakers at the Red Sea event, which is one of his first public speaking engagements since his fall from grace in 2022 after he slapped Chris Rock at the Academy Awards.
The actor, producer and rapper never broached the incident or subsequent fallout directly in the conversation but appeared to allude to his experiences of the past 18 months in some of his answers.
Philosophizing about fame, Smith said he had learned to stop looking for applause or validation as a guide to