Mark Romanek Departs Live-Action ‘Cinderella’ After Creative Clashing

Though last fall brought news of Cate Blanchett taking the role of a wicked step-mother in Disney’s new live-action take on Cinderella, the production has hit a bit of a snag. Deadline reports that director Mark Romanek (Never Let Me Go, One Hour Photo) has walked away from the project after clashing with the studio on how to tell the story. Basically, Romanek is going for a darker telling and Disney thinks it’s a little too dark to have a fairytale ending. So now the studio is hunting for a new director to replace him in order to get the film shooting by this summer. But what’s going on with casting the titular peasant turned princess? Apparently the studio has been testing leads since late last year with Hanna star Saoirse Ronan being the only specific named mentioned. Frankly, I’m a bit perturbed by Disney’s move to let Romanek go, but …