James Cameron is currently developing those back-to-back-to-back Avatar sequels as we speak, which forced him to put his long-gestating projects like Battle Angel and a remake of the 1966 sci-fi film Fantastic Voyage on the backburner. Fortunately, Robert Rodriguez entered talks to direct Battle Angel, while Cameron stays on the project as a producer. So that leaves Fantastic Voyage without a director. However, it sounds like the remake may now get one.

According to a new report, Crimson Peak director Guillermo del Toro is in talks to develop and direct the remake. With Pacific Rim 2 on indefinite hold, the long-awaited creative team of del Toro and Cameron may finally arrive in the form of Fantastic Voyage. More on the story below.

This wouldn’t be the first time that the two filmmakers tried to work together. In 2010, del Toro was tapped to direct an adaptation of the H.P. Lovecraft novel, At The Mountains of Madness. Cameron would be the film’s producer, and Tom Cruise would have been the lead star. However, Universal refused to greenlight the project because del Toro wanted to release it as an R-rated film, as opposed to a PG-13 film.

The remake of Fantastic Voyage would see del Toro reteam with his Blade 2 screenwriter David Goyer (Man of Steel, The Dark Knight). Goyer, along with Justin Rhodes, will continue to develop the script as the film is being developed.

In the original 1966 film, set during the Cold War, a team of scientists shrunk themselves down to atom size and entered the body of another scientist in an attempt to save his life.

The new movie is aimed at being an event-sized tentpole for Twentieth Century Fox. Cameron’s Lightstorm Entertainment will produce.

Many had speculated that del Toro would have followed up Crimson Peak with Pacific Rim 2. But Universal put the film on hold despite having turned in a script for the sequel. Sources close to THR tell them that Pacific Rim 2 is off the table indefinitely, which is why del Toro is now in talks over at Fox to direct the Fantastic Voyage remake.

As bleak as that news sounds for Pacific Rim 2, there is still a small glimmer of hope the film could happen. Wanda, a Chinese conglomerate, is about to buy a stake in Legendary Entertainment. This is very important because not only did Legendary Entertainment help produce the first Pacific Rim, but the film also did gangbusters in China, where it had a better box office performance than it did in the U.S. If this is successful, it would put a sequel in a better position to happen.

We’ll be sure to keep you posted on the development of both films.

[Source: THR]