Oceangate, the submersible tragedy that caught the world’s attention this past summer, is being turned into a movie, with E. Brian Dobbins (“The Blackening”) set to co-produce. A little too soon?
The fiction project currently has the title “Salvaged” and is being written by Justin MacGregor and Jonathan Keasy.
Now, let’s take a step back here, just for a second, and ponder the peculiar history of MacGregor — one look at his filmography and you realize he‘a director of two Tommy Wiseau movies (“Best Friend(S)” and “Best Friend(S): Volume 2”).
And yet, today’s reporting on this movie failed to mention that. It’s being taken very seriously. The reports also forget to point out that, as unbelievable as this sounds, co-writer Keasy might have an even worse batch of credits than MacGregor.
In the press release, announcing the film, Keasy stated that the film would specifically tackle media misinformation. What?!
The Titan Tragedy is yet another example of a misinformed and quick-to-pounce system, in this case, our nonstop, 24-7 media cycle that convicts and ruins the lives of so many people without any due process,” Keasy said. “Our film will not only honor all those involved in the submersible tragedy, and their families, but the feature will serve as a vessel that also addresses a more macro concern about the nature of media today. Truth is all that matters. And the world has a right to know the truth, always, not the salacious bait crammed down our throats by those seeking their five minutes of fame. Life is not black and white. It’s complicated. There’s nuance. Always nuance.
The film’s scope will “cover periods before, during, and after the five-day tragedy”, which claimed five lives. I say, forget about this movie even exists. It’s going to be a total bomb.
It had previously rumored that James Cameron was considering making a movie about the Titan submarine, but he quickly denounced these rumors as “offensive” to the lives lost. He tweeted, “I don’t respond to offensive rumors in the media usually, but I need to now. I’m NOT in talks about an OceanGate film, nor will I ever be.”
Oceangate’s Titan submersible vanished on June 18, setting off a massive search led by the U.S. and Canada. The passengers included OceanGate CEO, Stockton Rush. Wreckage from the Titan was found on June 22 near the Titanic.
Criterion's December lineup has some great additions to the library, but the title that jumped out at me is Werner Herzog's "Grizzly Man," which officially joins the Collection on December 8.