CREDIT DISCARD
He may play a high-profile mobster opposite Mel
Gibson, but James Coburn — who just received a Best Supporting
Actor nod for his performance in Affliction — is as good as
invisible in Payback's credits. What gives? ''The part I
originally signed on for just kept developing,'' says the
rough-hewn veteran actor, 70. ''Mel asked me to do a cameo as a
crime boss, without any credit to let it be a surprise to
audiences. But the part just kept getting...bossier.'' Not that
it matters. Paramount chairman ''Sherry Lansing told me she liked
my role,'' he says. ''Who needs more credit than that?''
HOW SWEET IT IS
It's the screenwriter's equivalent of finding a
golden ticket. Out of Sight scripter Scott Frank is adapting a
new version of Roald Dahl's classic children's book Charlie and
the Chocolate Factory for Warner Bros. Revisiting the
candy-colored fantasy might get a bit sticky, though, especially
since two generations of kids have grown up memorizing lines
from the 1971 musical version, Willy Wonka and the Chocolate
Factory, starring Gene Wilder. ''I try not to think about the
original,'' says Frank, who admits he's no fan. ''It's a studio
executive's version of a bad acid trip. The book is much
smarter, darker, edgier, and has more to say about parenting and
about being a kid.'' Rumor has it that Nicolas Cage is being
sweet-talked to play the loopy confectioner. ''Nicolas would be a
wonderful choice,'' says Brad Grey, likely to be one of Charlie's
producers. ''He can combine mystery, warmth, and darkness all at
the same time. That's very Wonka-like.'' Frank, however, has
another choice. ''I went back and read the Oompa-Loompa songs,''
he says, ''and they're very hip-hop. Maybe we can get Will Smith to play Wonka.''
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