Drew Barrymore to Direct Wizard of Oz Sequel

According to Pajiba Drew Barrymore is set to direct Surrender Dorothy, a sequel to The Wizard of Oz. This would be Barrymore’s second directing gig after debuting with Whip It last year. A report from way back in 2002 from Entertainment Weekly (posted below) described the project, though given that it was eight years ago things may have changed. Drew Barrymore was thought to star in the film back then but that may not be the case anymore.

In ”Surrender Dorothy,” Barrymore would play an updated version of the heroine of the L. Frank Baum novels and the 1939 movie. Kosberg described the premise a couple years ago to writers’-clearinghouse website AbsoluteWrite.com. While Dorothy appeared to have dispatched the Wicked Witch by melting her with a bucket of water, Kosberg said, ”What if the Witch didn’t die? What if it was all an act? And now it’s the year 2000 and the Wicked Witch is still alive and well and mean and green and she’s broken out of Oz Jail and she’s on her way to New York to get those damn red slippers once and for all.”