Brad Pitt's 'Moneyball' strikes out at Sony

By Andy Grieser

June 22, 2009 7:55 AM

In a surprising move, Sony and Columbia Pictures have shut down the Brad Pitt-Steven Soderbergh movie "Moneyball" just before start of production.

The movie was to begin production today in Phoenix, but according to the trades, was put on "limited turnaround" late last week by Columbia chief Amy Pascal.

Pascal reportedly was unhappy with the latest script rewrite by Soderbergh. The movie was to be based on Michael Lewis' 2004 book "Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game," which followed the 2002 Oakland Athletics baseball team as they tried to field a competitive team on a miniscule budget. There's no word on how that story was changed, or why Pascal was uncomfortable with those changes.

Limited turnaround means the film may still wind up with a different studio.

Pitt was set to star as A's general manager Billy Beane, with Demetri Martin co-starring as baseball statistician Paul De Podesta, whose Earned Run Value data helped peg talented but inexpensive players.