Marley (musical version of A Christmas Carol)

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Bill Condon, Disney Team for Musical Re-Imagining of 'A Christmas Carol' (Exclusive)
Titled 'Marley,' the unique feature will have music by Stephen Schwartz, who won two Oscars for 'Pocahontas' and wrote the songs for 'Wicked.'

Christmas has come early for Bill Condon.

The filmmaker is reuniting with Disney for whom he directed the live-action remake of Beauty and the Beast, for a unique and musical take on A Christmas Carol.

Titled Marley, the feature aims to tell the well-known story of Christmas Carol by reinventing it, conveying it through the eyes of Jacob Marley, the deceased business partner of Ebenezer Scrooge. Scrooge, of course, is the cold-hearted miser who, in the bulk of Charles Dickens’ classic, is visited by the Ghosts of Christmases Past, Present and Future who give him a chance to change his ways. Marley’s apparition, weighed down by chains and endless torment, visits Scrooge and foretells the man of his impending ghostly visits.

Condon has already written the script, denoting the project’s advanced development stage, and will direct.

Three-time Oscar winner Stephen Schwartz has written the music for Marley. The composer-songwriter has co-written songs for Disney’s Pocahontas and The Hunchback of Notre Dame, and is known for his work on Broadway’s Wicked.

Dan Jinks and Greg Yolen are producing.

Condon, who was nominated for an Oscar for writing the adaptation of Chicago, has shown an affinity for a range of genres ranging from dramas, musicals (he directed Dreamgirls and co-wrote The Greatest Showman) and YA vampire love stories. His Beast remake surprised observers with a $1.2 billion at the worldwide box office. His latest, the thriller The Good Liar which stars Helen Mirren and Ian McKellen, opens Nov. 15.

Christmas Carol and its myriad permutations remain Hollywood staples. Disney previously tackled the material with Robert Zemeckis’ motion capture version that starred Jim Carrey. In recent weeks, Apple picked up a musical take from Ryan Reynolds and Will Ferrell.

Condon is repped by WME and Anonymous Content.