James Newton Howard has signed on to score the upcoming fantasy movie Maleficent. The film marks the directorial debut of Academy Award-winning production designer Robert Stromberg (Avatar, Alice in Wonderland) and stars Angelina Jolie as the green-skinned wicked witch from Disney’s 1959 animated feature Sleeping Beauty. The movie tells the fairy tale from the perspective of Aurora’s evil nemesis, revealing the back story that led her to curse the girl as a baby. Elle Fanning portrays Princess Aurora and Sharlto Copley, Juno Temple, Sam Riley, Miranda Richardson and Imelda Staunton are also starring. Linda Woolverton (Alice in Wonderland) has written the screenplay. Joe Roth who has worked with the composer numerous times, including this year’s Snow White and the Huntsman and on three of his directorial efforts (America’s Sweethearts, Coup De Ville and Freedomland) is producing the project with Don Hahn (The Lion King, Beauty and the Beast). Dean Semler (Dances with Wolves) is the movie’s cinematographer and Richard Pearson (United 93) is editing the picture. Maleficent is set for a release on March 13, 2014 by Walt Disney Pictures.

As reported earlier this week, Newton Howard is also attached to score The Hunger Games: Catching Fire and is currently working on M. Night Shyamalan’s After Earth.

  1. David says:

    Great! JNH is back on Disney!

  2. sean says:

    green skinned, thats Wizard of Oz not Maleficent

  3. As well as a reunion with Joe Roth, it’s also the third time he’s scored a film with Angelina Jolie.

  4. can’t wait for Angie!

  5. Cameron says:

    I really just hope that he takes influence from Tchaikovsky.

    The score to the original disney score which used Tchaikovsky’s music was the main reason I enjoyed the film.