Dexter Fletcher Replaces Bryan Singer On ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’
Fox has replaced Bryan Singer on Bohemian Rhapsody with Dexter Fletcher, the director of the films Eddie the Eagle and Wild Bill. Fletcher will resume production next week. There are about two weeks left on the film, unless Fletcher decides to reshoot scenes. The filmmaker will then oversee postproduction as Fox hopes to keep the film on track for December 2018. It will be a good warm-up for Fletcher, who’s also attached to direct the biopic on Elton John.
Singer was fired from the film because of a pattern of unreliability, culminating in him not returning from the Thanksgiving break and being AWOL for three days. He also clashed with Rami Malek, The Mr. Robot star who plays Queen frontman Freddie Mercury. Singer’s reps disputed part of that narrative, claiming he has been dealing with a health issue with his mother, something that didn’t sway the studio in making the switch. Those reps also argued Singer had patched things up with Malek.
Fletcher started as an actor in the Matthew Vaughn films Kick-Ass and Stardust. Vaughn produced Eddie the Eagle for Fox.
The studio began canvassing for replacement directors even before Singer went AWOL after Thanksgiving, sources said. Fox denies this, and the studio denies that anyone but Fletcher was offered the job once Singer was sacked. My sources said that the film didn’t appeal to everyone. The payday will be big, but it will be a lot of work, and it is entirely up to the DGA whether Fletcher will get directing credit on the film, considering that Singer was almost finished with principal photography when he was removed. The original directors of World War Z and the Star Wars spinoff Rogue One remained the directors of record, even though the reshoots were supervised by others.
Still, Fox managed the crisis well by securing a filmmaker the studio trusts, in time to keep the postponement brief.
New Regency and Graham King are producing. Fletcher is repped by WME and Independent.
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