Jaume Collet-Serra Not Directing 'Suicide Squad 2' 

Jaume Collet-Serra To Helm Dis/Johnson’s ‘Jungle Cruise’ by by Mike Fleming Jr

Hollywood & Broadway Mourn Actor-Writer Sam Shepard

Ex-PI Anthony Pellicano Will Stay Locked Up Until 2019 by by Mike Fleming Jr

Jaume Collet-Serra To Direct Dwayne Johnson In ‘Jungle Cruise’: No ‘Suicide Squad 2’

EXCLUSIVE: Jaume Collet-Serra has been set by Disney to direct Dwayne Johnson in

. This means that Collet-Serra will withdraw from

, the Warner Bros sequel for which he was top choice. After directing a bunch of hit movies that included last summer’s sleeper

, Collet-Serra has been poised to take that step to star filmmaker, and numerous studios chased his next slot. He decided that the opportunity to originate a new Indiana Jones-like action-adventure franchise in lockstep with one of the most globally bankable film stars — like Gore Verbinski did with Johnny Depp in

 was a better opportunity than continuing a storyline originated by another director. Production will begin late next spring.

Pablo Schreiber Joins Dwayne Johnson In 'Skyscraper'

Plot details are being kept under wraps, but like

is based on the classic theme park attraction that takes guests on a guided tour through the rivers around the world.

‘s J.D. Payne and Patrick McKay wrote the most recent script draft. John Davis and John Fox will produce via Davis Entertainment, Beau Flynn will produce via his FlynnPictureCo. banner, and Johnson, Dany Garcia and Hiram Garcia are producing through Seven Bucks Productions.

Johnson does a lot of business with Warner Bros, and let Disney and that studio work out the Collet-Serra situation. Warner Bros will quickly find another filmmaker to guide

, a sought after slot that is the sequel to the film David Ayer wrote and directed based on the DC Comics property. The original film grossed $745 million worldwide and the ensemble that includes Will Smith, Margot Robbie and Jared Leto are poised to return.

rejoins a number of big pictures with open directing assignments that have been the subject of jockeying among filmmakers, a list that includes the 25th James Bond movie. Deadline revealed last week that

‘s David Mackenzie are the front runners for that job.

Collet-Serra, the Spanish director who broke into Hollywood with the genre hit 

has been an under the radar hitmaker, with credits including

 the latter of which grossed $119 million worldwide on a $17 million budget.

grossed $222 million worldwide for Universal. Collet-Serra most recently wrapped the Liam Neeson starrer 

’ Marc Haimes about the 1993 standoff between the FBI and Texas state law enforcement and the David Koresh-led Branch Davidians that turned the sleepy town of Elk, just outside of Waco, into a battle zone. A 51-day standoff ended with 76 people dead as the cult’s compound was engulfed by a raging fire.

Johnson (with producers Flynn, Garcia, Garcia along with John Rickard) recently wrapped the Brad Peyton-directed

for Warner Bros and New Line, based on the Midway arcade game. That film that reunited Peyton with Johnson after the hit

will be released on April 20, 2018. While Collet-Serra digs into the prep for

, Johnson starts work in August on the Rawson Thurber-directed

for Universal/Legendary. That film will be released July 13, 2018.

Producer Davis releases the Blue Sky Animation/Fox film

Scott Sheldon will oversee for FlynnPictureCo. Collet-Serra is repped by CAA, Management 360 and Gretchen Bruggeman Rush; Johnson is repped by WME and managed by Dany Garcia of The Garcia Companies.

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He’s worked Liam Neeson 4 times now, here’s hoping he puts him in Jungle Cruise too.

No sane studio doesn’t do a sequel to a movie that made $745.6 million worldwide.

C’mon Dwayne – get cracking on Doc Savage already!!

Stop wasting time with this Disney nonsense!!

Disney pays bills and gives you connections to the projects you really want to do

If Warner Bros. is smart they will not go through with a sequel to Suicide Squad. Nobody is asking for one…instead focus on Gotham City Sirens or other DC properties

I love the rock…… but they should have cast someone New!

I thought Robbie was out because she was doing Gotham City Sirens and Killer Frost was replacing Harley Quinn in SS2.

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