Atlas Shrugged, Ayn Rand’s masterpiece , is likely to be made into a movie soon. The cast is unknown, director inexperienced and the budget a measly 5 million dollars. Several top notch stars like Angelina Jolie, Charlize Theron, Anne Hathaway, Julia Roberts, Barbara Stanwyck, Faye Dunaway, Raquel Welch, Farrah Fawcett and Sharon Stone wanted to play the role of Dagny Taggart. Brad Pitt, Russel Crowe, Clint Eastwood and Robert Redford  wanted to be John Galt. Russell Wallace, James V. Hart and Sterling Silliphant are in the list of famous script writers who wanted to work on the script. Albert S. Ruddy tried to make it into a movie twice.

The stars playing John Galt, Dagny Taggart and Hank Rearden don’t have much experience in the movie industry, though they are experienced stars on the television. The script writer’s previous ventures didn’t do that well.

Howard Roark’s speech was trimmed in the movie version of The Fountainhead. Rand denounced the movie from the outset. Ayn Rand prevented the production of a movie version of Atlas Shrugged by Albert Rudd refusing him creative control. John Agliolaro tried for 18 years to bring atlas shrugged to the movie screen, but didn’t succeed. The merger of Time Warner and AOL prevented a mini series too. Agliolaro and Stephen Polk, the director had a clash over the casting and plot, and hence that plan too didn’t succeed. Agliolaro wanted to do a cheap version of the movie, whichis likely to get a pay from the Ayn Rand estate. The experience of the “Fantastic Four” must have taught him a lesson.

There are six million copies of Atlas Shrugged on print. All of Rand’s books, books on Rand, and cinematic adaptations of her works have done really well in the market.Ayn Rand fans, however didn’t respond really well to adapatations of her works which didn’t meet the standards of her writings.Ayn Rand’s writing carefully lays out what people would see on the screen, making directors irrelevant. This might have put many directors off. It would be a battle for them with Ayn Rand and her followers.

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