Venice 2012: Italy's Gabriele Muccino Eyeing Science Fiction for Next Project

3:20 PM PDT 9/2/2012 by Eric J. Lyman

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Gabriele Muccino - Venice Film Fest - P 2012

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The "Pursuit of Happyness" director is eyeing a new genre and looking to cast Keanu Reeves as the lead.

VENICE -- Italian director Gabriele Muccino said Sunday that his next film would likely be a thriller or science fiction project.

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Muccino -- best known for L’Ultimo Bacio (The Last Kiss) from 2001 and a pair of Will Smith films, The Pursuit of Happyness from 2006 and Seven Pounds from 2008 -- spoke on the sidelines of the Venice Film Festival.

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Muccino’s just-completed project, a sports drama starring Gerard Butler, Jessica Biel, Dennis Quaid, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Uma Thurman called Playing for Keeps, will open in the U.S. on Dec. 7.

Muccino only discussed the thriller or science-fiction project in broad terms but did say that it could cast Keanu Reeves in a starring role.

Muccino also said that he is curious about new online distribution models for films, and he predicted they would become more widespread. He also noted that a “huge” part of the advertising budget for Playing for Keeps would be online, a change compared to previous films he directed.