Luca Guadagnino’s ‘Sgt Rock’ “Needs to Change” Creatively Before Shooting

Many wondered why Luca Guadagnino’s “Sgt. Rock” ended up nixing its summer shoot. Some contradicting info soon emerged. Deadline and The Wrap claimed it was a scheduling issue. Meanwhile, THR had a source telling them it might have had to do with Guadagnino’s lack of action blockbuster experience.

Now James Gunn is telling EW that the film might still happen, and that the actual reason why it was delayed was due to the overall vision of the project to being up to his standards:

I feel like we're in a pretty good place. We're still moving forward, but it's not going to be...What would Peter want me to say here? ... So it's still moving forward, but, yeah, right now it wasn't exactly where I wanted it to be creatively, and so it needs to change a little bit.

This is a curious turn of events. James Gunn had made it clear that, under his leadership, directors would — and should — have creative control within the new DC Universe (DCU). His vision centered on hiring top-tier directors and writers and giving them the freedom to shape their stories. But evidently, Justin Kuitzkes’ script for “Sgt. Rock” didn’t meet Gunn’s standards.

Director Luca Guadagnino was already deep into pre-production when he was informed that “Sgt. Rock” was being shelved, a decision that almost certainly came from Gunn himself. The film had been slated to begin shooting in July, with a strong cast attached, including Jeremy Allen White, Mike Faist, and David Jonsson. Guadagnino had also assembled his trusted creative team: cinematographer Sayombhu Mukdeeprom, composers Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, and costume designer Jonathan Anderson.