American filmmaker Adam McKay has worked on several projects which never progressed beyond the pre-production stage under his direction. Some of these projects never went beyond development, were officially canceled, or progressed under a different production team.
In 1999, McKay and Will Ferrell wrote the business comedy August Blowout. The premise reportedly was to have seen Ferrell starring as a car salesman desperate to make his sales quota during his dealership's annual August clearance sale.[1] While the script impressed both Ben Stiller and Paul Thomas Anderson, McKay and Ferrell opted to make Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy instead, but would later produce a similar-plotted comedy, The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard.[2]
In 2001, McKay co-wrote the screenplay Utopia Road with Jay Roach attached to direct, but it fell through, and Etan Cohen later rewrote.[2] According to Variety, the project was a comedy inspired by Roach's nearby idyllic neighborhood and "pits the neighborhood's most relentless socializer against a privacy-craving newcomer."[3]
In 2005, McKay was set to write, direct and produce a film adaptation of the television series Land of the Lost with Will Ferrell and Jack Black set to star, but Brad Silberling ended up directing the film without Black.[2]
In 2005, McKay was set to direct the comedy CEO from a screenplay by Ian Roberts and Jay Martel, but made Step Brothers instead.[2]
In 2008, McKay was set to direct and produce a sci-fi comedy film similar to Brazil entitled Channel 3 Billion, which he co-wrote with Dennis McNichols around the time The Other Guys started filming, but there has been no word about the film since.[2]
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On August 5, 2010,[4]
In 2011, McKay was in talks to direct the Thanksgiving comedy film 3 Mississippi, with Robert Carlock and Scott Silveri writing the script and Will Ferrell, Mark Wahlberg, Alec Baldwin, and Jeremy Renner cast in the film for Warner Bros.[2] But on April 11, 2012, Sean Anders was hired to direct the film instead as McKay was going to start Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues.[5]
On June 29, 2011, McKay was attached to produce and direct the remake of Swear to God with Will Ferrell attached to star in after Warner Bros. bought Alan Cohen and Alan Freedland’s screenplay.[6] On August 10, 2012, Justin Theroux was hired to direct the movie instead of McKay.[7]
On April 26, 2012, McKay was set to direct the remake of Uptown Saturday Night with Will Smith and Denzel Washington possibly attached to star.[8] On November 25, 2013, Nicholas Stoller was hired to write the screenplay for McKay’s remake, and Smith and Washington were set to star when their schedules line up.[9]
On May 14, 2012, Deadline Hollywood announced that HBO was developing single-camera comedy series written by McKay and Chris Henchy, and planned to star Rob Riggle. Set in the world of bond traders in 1980s Wall Street, the series was to have reportedly followed "a successful, hard-living boss who lives a dark, self-centered, unhealthy life." The project was to have been executive produced by McKay and Henchy alongside Will Ferrell through Gary Sanchez Productions, as well as Mark Wahlberg, Stephen Levinson, Peter Principato and Paul Young.[10]
On April 15, 2014, McKay was eyeing to direct the comedy movie Border Guards for Columbia Pictures.[11]
On September 18, 2014, it was reported that McKay would team with Ben Schwartz and Seth Rogen to direct them in an untitled comedy written by Schwartz. Gary Sanchez Productions, Point Grey Pictures and Good Universe preemptively purchased Schwartz's pitch. While the involved parties all seemed enthusiastic about the collaboration at the time,[12] the proposed film never went beyond the planning stage.
On August 5, 2015, McKay was set to write the Broadway musical based on Archie as a collaboration between Funny or Die and Archie Comics.[13]
On May 5, 2016, McKay was set to direct and produce a film adaptation of Mark Waid’s comic book series Irredeemable, with Tommy Wirkola writing the screenplay, Boom Studios Ross Richie, Stephen Christy and Adam Yoelin producing and 20th Century Fox distributing.[14] But, on March 17, 2022, Netflix and Boom Studios were set to adapt Irredeemable and Incorruptible into a single film with Jeymes Samuel set to direct and produce and Kemp Powers writing the screenplay, without McKay's involvement.[15]
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On October 30, 2019,[16]
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On January 15, 2020,[17]
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On August 4, 2020,[18]
On April 30, 2023, McKay was set to write, direct, and produce Average Height, Average Build with Robert Pattinson, Amy Adams, Robert Downey Jr., Forest Whitaker, and Danielle Deadwyler set to star and Netflix distributing.[19] On December 4, 2023, McKay decided to scrap this movie for a climate change movie for Netflix.[20]
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On December 4, 2023,[20]
On July 29, 2010, McKay was set to produce the television adaptation of Julie Klausner’s memoir I Don’t Care About Your Band for HBO with Jessica Elbaum set as the show creator and Lizzy Caplan set to portray Klausner.[21]
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On December 7, 2010,[22]
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On December 15, 2011,[23] On April 17, 2014,[24]
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On March 8, 2012,[25]
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On March 26, 2012,[26]
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On September 7, 2012,[27]
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On October 5, 2012,[28]
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On March 18, 2013,[29]
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On October 11, 2013,[30]
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On November 18, 2013,[31]
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On April 3, 2014,[32]
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On April 28, 2014,[33]
On July 22, 2014, McKay was attached to produce the animated movie adaptation of the TV series Manimal through Sony Pictures Animation.[34]
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On October 23, 2014,[35]
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On April 14, 2016,[36]
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On September 29, 2016,[37]
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On October 21, 2016,[38]
On May 5, 2017, McKay was set to produce Mark Cullen’s gambling addiction drama TV series The Collector for TNT.[39]
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On August 21, 2017,[40]
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On August 23, 2017,[41]
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On May 18, 2018,[42]
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On May 24, 2018,[43]
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On February 22, 2019,[44]
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On December 4, 2020,[45]
On December 18, 2020, McKay was set to produce the limited series Cutblock for HBO through Hyperobjects Industries.[46]
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On April 8, 2021,[47]
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On December 16, 2021,[48]
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On January 20, 2022,[49]
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On March 16, 2022,[50]
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On June 22, 2022,[51]
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On September 27, 2022,[52]
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On March 7, 2023,[53]
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On May 2, 2024,[54]
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On May 8, 2024,[55]
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On September 14, 2024,[56]
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On October 1, 2024,[57]
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