Ever since 300 arrived in cinema there’s been talk of a sequel – especially as Frank Miller has penned a follow-up – but with Zack Snyder now busy on Man Of Steel, the directing reins have had to be passed on, and Warner has decided Noam Murro is the man for the job. THR reports that the Smart People helmer is now the choice to helm 300: Battle Of Artemisia (previously known as Xerxes), with an official offer expected to go out this week.
The studio was down to Noam Murro and Jaume Collet-Serra to direct the film, but while Warner liked both directors, they’ve decided to go with Noam Murro for 300: Battle of Artemisia, while offering the Akira directing gig to Jaume Collet-Serra (which we reported late last week). Although Smart People was a little indie flick that you wouldn’t expect would make a studio think he’d be up to the job, Murro attracted huge amounts of attention for his atmospheric ads for Halo: Reach, which were more suggestive that he’d know his way around an effects heavy flick.
300: Battle of Artemisia is based on the Frank Miller graphic novel which is told from the point of view of Xerxes, the tyrannical ruler who was portrayed by Rodrigo Santoro in 300. The tale spans over hundreds of years as Xerxes tries to attain godhood, but mainly focuses on the Battle of Artemisia in 480 BC, where he went up against the brutish but brilliant Themistocles (the battle only took place there as the rather corrupt Themistocles had accepted a bribe to keep his fleet in the city). This battle took place almost simultaneous to the one at Thermopylae, chronicled in 300,
300 director Zack Snyder wrote the screenplay for 300: Battle of Artemisia along with Kurt Johnstad. It’s not clear when the movie might shoot.