McG may have a 'Spring Awakening'

The cast of "Spring Awakening" at the 2007 Tony Awards.

Credit: AP Photo/Jeff Christensen

McG has been a busy man.  Not only is he putting the finishing touches on what has becoming a highly anticipated potential summer blockbuster, "Terminator: Salvation," he's been developing a project as far from an action franchise as you can get: a musical.

Yes, according to The Hollywood Reporter, McG has been discussing a big screen adaptation of "Spring Awakening" with original book writer and song lyricist Steven Sater.  McG would direct and produce the movie musical through his Wonderland Sound and Vision company.  While the filmmaker has a deal at Warner Bros., the studio distributing "Terminator," the Broadway favorite might be independently financed to keep the intimacy and edge of the original stage production.

A Tony winner for best musical, book, original score and actor in 2007.  Sater and composer Duncan Sheik (better know for his 1996 hit "Barely Breathing") based the musical on a 1981 German play about a group of teens discovering their sexuality and dealing with subjects such as masturbation, abortion, rape and suicide. 

While McG might not seem like a filmmaker destined for movie musicals, he got his start on that side of the business co-produing Sugar Ray's first album and made numerous music videos for bands and artists such as Cypress HIll, Korn, Wycleaf Jean, Everclear and Smash Mouth.  Plus, did you ever see that musical number dream sequence with Cameron Diaz in "Charlie's Angels"?  'Nuff said.

No word on what the timeline is for a big screen "Spring Awakening," but don't expect a definitive word on the project until a studio or financing is secured.