AMELIE Film Director 'Disgusted' by Plans for Broadway Adaptation But Sells Rights For Charity

Following the recent news that French director Jean-Pierre Jeunet's 2001 film AMÉLIE will be adapted for Broadway by Hem's Dan Messé, book writer Craig Lucas and co-lyricist Nathan Tysen, it has come out that the movie director is "disgusted" by the idea of AMÉLIE on Broadway.

Despite this, in the name of charity, Jeunet has decided to sell the rights, according to a story by Agence France-Presse.

"I hate Broadway. I think it is the very incarnation of tackiness," Jeunet said in a radio interview, during which he also spoke about an organization he supports called Mecenat Chirurgie Cardiac (Heart Surgery Patronage). Jeunet continued: "I have already helped to save a good dozen children, and then I thought this could be an opportunity to save more."

Read the original report here.

Composer and lyricist Dan Messé of Hem revealed on the band's Facebook page on August 13 that he is currently working on the Broadway adaptation of AMÉLIE.

Paste also recently spoke with Messé about his work on the musical. "It definitely sounds like me," Messé said during the interview. "One of the big challenges for me is that there is already iconic music associated with this piece. The Yann Tiersen score is amazing...He's a very different sort of composer than I am. And I'm not interested in doing Parisian music. I don't think I'm even going to use accordion in my score."

Now AMÉLIE's first big musical deadline is coming up with the first draft due on Labor Day.

AMÉLIE follows an innocent and naive girl in Paris, with her own sense of justice, who decides to help those around her and along the way, discovers love. The 2001 film starred French actress Audrey Tautou as Amélie. Amélie won Best Film at the European Film Awards, four César Awards (including Best Film and Best Director), two BAFTA Awards (including Best Original Screenplay), and was nominated for five Academy Awards.