Polanski Arrest Screws up 'The Ghost'

I've pretty much neglected to talk about the Polanski thing because I prefer to deal with the fun stuff in movies, not the boring legalese. Since I'm already on the subject I might as well just lay it out there: I think this is all a monumental waste of time. I'll leave it at that. What bothers me even more is that his arrest pushes back, and possibly shelves, a film that I've been anticipating since it was first announced. Polanski's latest, The Ghost, was in post-production at the time of his arrest. Polanski's agent says that most of the editing on the film had been completed. Whether or not someone else will come in to complete the process is unknown, but I highly doubt it.

The Ghost is a political thriller that became something of a sensation in the UK back in 2007 due to it's thinly veiled similarities to Tony Blair. The story involves a former British Prime Minister in the midst of writing his memoirs. When his previous ghostwriter drowns under mysterious circumstances, an author is brought in to replace him, and begins uncovering clues about his predecessors demise. Ewan McGregor and Pierce Brosnan star, along with Kim Cattrall and Tom Wilkinson.

The film has already secured international distribution, so there is still hope. No deal has been reached in the U.S. as of now. Roman Polanski's agent, Jeff Berg, seems fairly confident that all will be cleared up.

"There is always interest in movies that Roman distributes," Berg said. "It should be accepted on its own merits, but we feel highly confident we'll find proper distribution."

"I'm always optimistic when it comes to Roman," Berg said. "He's strong, and he has survived every situation imaginable."

I hope he's right.

THR has more on the story here.