Last fall Disney’s live-action adaptation of Cinderella added some major star power in the form of Cate Blanchett. The Oscar-winning star would be playing the evil stepmother in the new film written by Chris Weitz and Aleen Brosh McKenna, and directed by Mark Romanek. Saoirse Ronan and other high-profiled young actresses are currently in the running for the lead role.

However, there is a slight delay now that Romanek is out as director. According to sources, the director was let go because his dark vision didn’t fit with Disney’s fairy tale formula.

I say slight delay because filming is expected to begin in the summer. Which is plenty of time for Disney to find a director who understands Disney’s audience. But I am more interesting in knowing how dark Romanek’s take was. Seeing some of the direction that these latest fairy tale adaptations are taking, it would have to have been really dark. I only say this because Pirates of the Caribbean films are some of the darkest entries in Disney’s vault.

Here’s a statement from the studio:

The Walt Disney Studios and Mark Romanek have parted ways on Disney’s Cinderella project. We are committed to moving the project forward and have begun the search for a new director. The team here at Disney respects Mark as both a director and a friend, and we hope to find something to work on together in the future.

While it is certainly disappointing to see Romanek and Disney part ways, I am very interested to see who they choose as his replacement. Also interested to see who Disney chooses to play the lead role.

[Source: Deadline]