Timur Bekmambetov To Direct Edison/Westinghouse Battle 'The Current War'

Briefly: Timur Bekmambetov now has a project to possibly follow up Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter. He has just been attached to direct The Current War, which isn't about a war taking place now, but rather about a battle over electricity. Specifically, Michael Mitnick's spec script is about "the competition between Thomas Edison and George Westinghouse to create the first sustainable electrical current."

That's potentially a great story, though I wonder how Bekmambetov, whose work isn't exactly closely indebted to truth and history, will make the movie. Steven Zaillian is producing, as is Bekmambetov. There is no cast yet, though Sacha Baron Cohen was reportedly interested in playing Edison at one point. Now that the top-level team is set, we'll see whether or not he gets an offer. [Variety]