Following the release of The Judge, Warner Bros. and Team Downey (the production company run by Robert Downey Jr. and his wife, Susan) are already making plans for their next collaboration. They’ve turned to Academy Award nominated writer Terry Rossio to pen Yucatan, a movie Downey Jr. may potentially star in.
Yucatan’s script is based on a 1700 page treatment which was actually written by legendary actor Steve McQueen in the late 1960s, and the plan at the time was for him to have taken on the leading role.
Rossio’s credits include the Pirates Of The Caribbean amovies, Mask Of Zorro, and Deja Vu.
The treatment was apparently found among others in two leather-bound trunks after his death. The movie apparently focuses on a renegade salvage expert’s search for Mayan treasure in the Yucatan Peninsula. There’s no word on how this version will differ, but McQueen and Downey Jr. are two very different leading men, so you have to imagine that a number of key changes will indeed be made as it’s developed.
Other projects being developed by Team Downey include Pinocchio, a Kiss Kiss Bang Bang spinoff focusing on Perry Mason, and Sherlock Holmes. Anthony Peckham also tried at one point to develop Yucatan, but will not be involved in this iteration. Robert Downey Jr. is going to be a very busy man over the next few years…
