Collider has brought word that Oscar-winning director Guillermo del Toro (The Shape of Water, Pacific Rim, Pan’s Labyrinth) has signed on to write and direct the action-thriller Zanbato for J.J. Abrams’ Bad Robot Productions and Paramount Pictures.
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The plot details are being kept underwraps, and while Collider initially reported the film would be a ninja-themed project, del Toro took to Twitter to clarify that it is not a ninja film, but will follow a young girl somewhere between the age of 10-15 with lethal fighting skills, similar to films along the lines of Kick-Ass and Hanna.
Though never announced or discussed prior, del Toro has been working on the development for this film for over six years, crediting “JJ maximum security” for properly keeping the project a secret from the public. The 54-year-old director is currently attached to write, produce and direct Netflix’s upcoming stop-motion animated remake of the fantasy classic Pinocchio, but while that film has a slated release date of January 1, 2020 and is in pre-production in Portland, Oregon, he also hinted that Zanbato might be shot before.
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Abrams and del Toro have been producer masterminds for the past few years in Hollywood, with the former helping keep the reinvigorated Mission: Impossible franchise alive alongside the Cloverfield series and the recent horror actioner Overlord, while del Toro helped write and produce the Hobbit trilogy and Lionsgate’s upcoming adaptation of the classic children’s horror novel series Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark, which is slated to hit theaters on August 9.
In addition to his producing work, Abrams recently returned to behind the camera for the upcoming ninth and final installment in the primary storyline of the hit sci-fi action franchise, Star Wars: Episode IX, which recently wrapped production and is slated for a December 20 release.
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