Miramax goes to bat for ‘Damn Yankees’

In the wake of the box office success of “Chicago,” winner of this year’s best picture Oscar and Miramax Films’ highest-grossing movie ever, the studio plans to turn the 1955 Broadway hit “Damn Yankees” into a feature film. Craig Zadan and Neil Meron, executive producers of “Chicago,” are set to produce the musical.

“Damn Yankees,” based on Douglass Wallop’s novel “The Year the Yankees Lost the Pennant,” tells the story of a die-hard Washington Senators fan who sells his soul to the devil to help the team beat the Yankees. “I see us updating ‘Damn Yankees,’ modernizing it and really having fun with the role of the devil,” Miramax co-chairman Harvey Weinstein said.

The Tony Award-winning musical, directed by George Abbott and choreographed by Bob Fosse, was made into a 1958 Warner Bros. feature film starring Tab Hunter, Gwen Verdon and Ray Walston.

Though “Chicago” director Rob Marshall choreographed a 1994 Broadway revival of “Damn Yankees,” no stars or director have been confirmed for the project. Zadan and Meron also are producing a “Guys and Dolls” remake for Miramax and a new screen version of “Footloose” for Paramount Pictures.