Being an in-demand comedienne, reports often pop up that Isla is going to be starring in various different movies. More often than not many of those films don’t materialise (read about those here), but this page is to keep track of the films Isla has been linked to that we presume are still in development and she may still be working on. We know that Isla is turning her talents to scriptwriting and developing her own projects (read more about that here), and this can often take a long time to come to fruitation. We’ll keep track of how they are progressing and do our best to update their statuses here.

Isla is rumoured to be one of 8 actresses being considered for the lead role opposite Johnny Depp in a re-make of The Thin Man. The Thin Man centers around Nick Charles, a detective turned socialite, as he and his wife Nora are drawn into the investigation of a murder. Rob Marshall is directing, and the other actresses he is said to be considering are Eva Green, Amy Adams, Emma Stone, Carey Mulligan, Rachel Weisz, Kristen Wiig and Emily Blunt.

Status Updates:
April 1st 2012: Deadline breaks the news that Isla is one of the eight actresses being considered for this role. (News post)

In 2009 it was reported that Isla was in talks to star in Desperados, a comedy road-trip film described as a “female oriented Hangover“. The story is about a woman who sends an indignant email to her new beau, who has gone silent after they have sex, only to discover he’s comatose in a Mexican hospital. Panicking, she races south of the border with her friends in tow to intercept the email before he recovers. The initial reports about the development of the project stated that Universal had picked it up, with Mark Gordon, Jason Blum and Jennifer Todd producing.

The Playlist (now located at IndieWire.com) editors blogged that although it was “funny in fits and starts”, they “weren’t overly impressed” with the script when they saw it in 2010, and that the then-upcoming Bridesmaids looked like a safer bet at matching the success of The Hangover.

Status Updates:
November 15th 2011: IMDB updated the status for this film on this date, and have it listed as ‘In Production’. Nothing new about this project or Isla’s involvement has been heard since Betty Thomas signing on was rumoured in 2011, however.

March 21st 2011: News broke that original director Wayne McClammy had left due to creative differences, and Betty Thomas (Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel, Dr. Doolittle, Private Parts, The Brady Bunch Movie) had now signed on. (News post)

May 17th 2010: Wayne McClammy (The Sarah Silverman Show) is said to be directing. (News post)

November 7th 2009: Project first reported, with Ellen Rapoport on board to script. (News post)

News came out in early 2010 that Isla was attached to star in “high concept” romantic comedy Kiss & Tell. The story centers around a woman who discovers she has the power to see exactly how a long-term relationship will unfold with a man after kissing him. Dax Shelby and Robert Stevens were reported to be penning the script based on their original idea, with Sheldon Turner (writer of 2009 hit Up In The Air) and Jennifer Klein producing for Universal. Variety reported that the project is one of the first that Debbie Liebling picked up since becoming president of production at Universal.

Status Updates:
April 12th 2012: Upon writing this page and searching for further news on this project’s development, I found that IMDB are still listing the project (including under Sheldon Turner’s ‘In Development’ list), although no stars or writers are currently listed anymore. No further news reports on the development have been released since the initial story in 2010.

February 23rd 2010: First news of the project, listing Isla as being attached, and script writers and producers as above. (News post)

October 2009 saw the announcement of not one but two new projects for Isla – One Day My Princes Will Come, and Life Coach (below). Both films were acquired by Universal. One Day My Princes Will Come is actually Untitled, but based off a French script entitled Un Jour mes princes viendront … translated as One Day My Princes Will Come. Audrey Wells (Under the Tuscan Sun) was attached to direct. Universal would not disclose the plot of this film, but it is a romantic comedy. Alain Chabot and Stephanie Danan will produce through Wam Films. The New York Times list Jean-Luc Goosens as the ‘source material’, presumably the writer of the French script.

Status Updates:
April 12th 2012: Upon searching for more information about the status of this project, it seems to be listed at IMDB as Untitled Isla Fisher Project and categorised as In Development. No further details have been made available.

October 8th 2009: Project announced, with Isla set to star, Audrey Wells directing. (News post)

The second new project announced for Isla in October 2009 was Life Coach, again acquired by Universal. Not only would Isla be starring in this, though, she is also reported to be producing it. Life Coach is a comedy about a young woman who consults a life coach who turns out to be more messed up than she is. Liz Cackowski (SNL writer) and Maggie Carey (Funny or Die Presents… writer) are writing the script, with Will Ferrell, Adam McKay, and Chris Henchy co-producing.

Status Updates:
April 12th 2012: Life Coach is still listed on IMDB as being In Development, although no further developments have been heard since the initial announcement.

February 2011: Isla mentioned this movie in a 2011 interview with IndieLondon whilst promoting Rango, saying “there’s a movie called Life Coach I’m working on. Hopefully, one of them [Life Coach or Groupies] will go soon. It’s more frustrating being in development than it is to just be cast in something, obviously, because a lot of it is out of your control.”

October 8th 2009: Project announced as a star vehicle for Isla, with writers and producers as listed above. (News post)

Isla’s debut screenwriting project! Isla and fellow funny lady Amy Poehler have been developing this female driven comedy project for several years now. “I was just surprised as to the lack of comedic female material there is,” Isla confessed after her breakout role in Wedding Crashers, and instead of waiting for roles to be written, she decided to dive on in and take charge of this project. The idea and story of Groupies is Isla and Amy’s own.

Groupies was first announced in November 2005 after being acquired by Paramount, with Isla and Amy Poehler attached to star and executive produce, and Erica Rivinoja writing the screenplay. Somewhere along the line, Isla and Amy joined the script writing duties. John Goldwyn, Lorne Michaels and Jill Messick were named as co-producers in the 2005 Variety announcement.

Of the script writing process, Isla says that she and Amy Poehler wrote much of the structure and the gags, and they hired Erica Rivinoja to write the actual script itself. They were careful to make sure that the girls got to be funny, and not just “stand there while some boy made a joke.” In 2009 Isla said that she still rewrites some of her lines, much to the “the distress of everybody that works with me!” They had a “great time” writing this script, and it sure sounds like a riotous, fun movie!

Groupies will follow two 30-year old woman who worship a rock band and follow them around on tour. One synopsis released several years ago described it as: Groupies is a comedy set in the world of rock ‘n’ roll groupies. Perhaps the only lifestyle that can rival the roller coaster ride rock stars follow is, well, their groupies. Theirs is a carefree, free rolling life with no regard for social norms such as having jobs, boosting savings, and planning for future. What comes, goes and this is exactly the kind of flow the movie Groupies wishes to follow. Expect a great portrayal of rock stardom as well as an apt representation of what goes behind its glitz and glamour.

Isla says that “it’s about classic, overconfident dum-dums lusting after a band. There’s a restraining order against them, but they’re in total denial.” “It’s essentially two girls who… It’s a little like Dumb and Dumber with two women. We’re these really deluded, over-confident, dumb dumbs who fall in love with the band, and we believe that they share the same love for us. And, we run their fan club. It’s called Groupies, and we are the world’s worst groupies, but we think that we are king of the mountain,” she adds. The band in the movie are “not dissimilar to Creed,” Isla says.

Read more about Isla’s screenwriting work here.

Status Updates:
April 13th 2012: Still listed as ‘In Development’ on IMDB. It’s possible this has taken a backseat in recent years as Amy Poehler continues her successful role on SNL, and Isla has been working on more film roles, not to mention building her own family.

February 2011: Isla tells Indie London that Groupies is “pretty close to being ready”, and that “hopefully, one of them [this or Life Coach] will go soon.”

February 2009: Tells Moviehole that she still rewrites a lot of her lines, suggesting the script is still undergoing revisions.

March 2007: Isla talks a bit more in depth about the writing process for Groupies in an interview with Movies Online.

November 10th 2005: Project announced by Variety. (Original news report (external link)))

The story follows Claire “Cookie” Taylor (Fisher), who holds the record for all-time girl scout cookie sales. When she learns that a precocious fifth grader threatens to end her 20-year reign as cookie queen, she sets out to sabotage her. Isla will serve as a producer on this movie. There is conflicting information on whether she co-wrote the script, but she has definitely helped to develop this project. Jeremy Haft and Ed Gonzalez are known to have written the script, and Universal and Mosaic Media are producing. This project was first announced way back in April 2007.

Isla mentioned this project in a couple of interviews in 2007 and again in 2009, saying “Cookie Queen is a girl who sold the most Girl Scout cookies and built her entire adult life round that. Then a nine year old girl overtakes her record and the woman descends into madness as she starts selling cookies again to get her crown back. I sold Girl Scout cookies in Australia, but, as I recall, I ate most of my box. My mom had to bail me out.”

Status Updates:
April 13th 2012: Five years after it’s initial announcement, Cookie Queen is still listed as ‘In Development’ at IMDB.

February 2009: When asked during an unknown interview in 2009 what she was doing next, Isla referenced Rango, Groupies and Cookie Queen. She said that her character Claire “descends into madness” to get her crown as the cookie selling queen back.

July 2007: In a July 2007 interview with Buzzine, Isla says that Cookie Queen has “been bought”, and explains how these projects she is developing for herself come about, saying that she will “come up with the idea, or an idea is brought to me, and then I work together with them” to develop it.

April 30th 2007: Project announced by The Hollywood Reporter. (Original news report (external link)))

March 2007: Isla first mentioned Cookie Queen (or ‘Cookie Clean‘ (typo by the website?)) in an interview with Movies Online in March 2007, saying that since she started on Groupies, she’d also been working on this with two male writers. “I’m still being creative and moving more into production, and making sure I have a little bit more power and control over my career,” she told the website.