Steven Spielberg and Judd Apatow have teamed up for Sony’s upcoming film, Cola Wars, which will delve into the historic rivalry between Coca-Cola and Pepsi. The project, which recently secured Spielberg as a producer and Apatow as the director, was acquired by Sony for over US$1 million following a competitive auction, as reported by Deadline.
Set in the mid-1980s, Cola Wars will explore key moments in the soda battle, including the New Coke controversy and a Pepsi advertisement gone wrong that resulted in Michael Jackson’s hair catching fire. The script for the movie is being crafted by Jason Shuman, known for Acapulco, and Ben Queen, who has credits on Cars 2 and The Addams Family 2. Sony’s Maia Eyre is overseeing the project, which is still in its early stages with no release date or casting details announced yet.
Spielberg, a legendary filmmaker with credits including Jaws, Jurassic Park, and the Indiana Jones trilogy, brings a vast array of experience as a director and producer to the table. His recent works include Lincoln, Ready Player One, The Fabelmans, and West Side Story. Spielberg also has an upcoming UFO film in collaboration with Jurassic Park screenwriter David Koepp. Apatow, renowned for directing hit comedies like The 40-Year-Old Virgin and Knocked Up, also directed the 2020 film The King of Staten Island and episodes of HBO’s Crashing.
Cola Wars joins a growing list of brand-based movies that delve into the stories behind major enterprises. Films like Air, BlackBerry, and The Beanie Bubble reflect Hollywood’s current fascination with corporate narratives.
The story of Cola Wars is set against a backdrop of fierce marketing battles and corporate strategies, featuring Pepsi’s unscientific taste-test ads aimed at dethroning Coke, and Coca-Cola’s retaliatory moves like the introduction of Diet Coke and the ill-fated reformulation of their flagship beverage as New Coke. The rivalry also includes memorable but problematic celebrity endorsements, most notably the incident with Michael Jackson.
With two of Hollywood’s distinguished figures at the helm and a real-life corporate saga to portray, Cola Wars promises to be a dynamic addition to the cinematic portrayal of brand stories. As the project develops, audiences and industry watchers alike will be eager to see how Spielberg and Apatow bring this fizzy confrontation to life on the big screen.
Natalie is a big fan of anything related to movies, TV shows, games, and comics — you name it. When she’s not reading or geeking out about the latest shows on Netflix, she’s probably playing gacha and tabletop games, or daydreaming of meeting her idols.
