Disney Deems Mamet's Anne Frank Adaptation 'Too Dark'

Well, that didn't take long. The pairing of Pulitzer Prize winner David Mamet and Disney for a film adaptation of The Diary of Anne Frank, which was announced in August, has ended, according to columnist Sharon Waxman. Mamet's screenplay, which is an adaptation of the heartbreaking book and subsequent 1959 film, has ultimately been deemed "too dark" by the studio, which its known for its uplifting, family-friendly fare.

Not that the label "too dark" is any surprise. Mamet, whose 1992 play Oleanna begins performances on Broadway on September 29, is also the director and scribe behind new play Race. The playwright often explores such topics as corruption, sexual harrassment, anti-Semitism and the darker end of the spectrum of the human condition. Though the diary adaptation started off with Disney-friendly intentions, the finished product evolved into the story of a contemporary Jewish girl who discovers the trauma of suicide bombing during a visit to modern Israel.

"It's very intense, and dark and scary," an unnamed Disney executive told Waxman's The Wrap. "It's not a film version of The Diary of Anne Frank."

There's no word yet on whether another studio will pick up the screenplay, though with Mamet's prolific resume, it's a distinct possibility. In the meantime, don't cry for Mamet. The scribe's already got a full plate. In addition to making his Broadway directorial debut with Race and the starry production of Oleanna starting up, there is also the Atlantic Theater Company’s double bill of the playwright’s short works, Keep Your Pantheon and School, which opens September 30.