Hairspray movie on hold

Variety reports that the start date for the movie musical Hairspray has been pushed back six months, forcing directors Jerry Mitchell and Jack O'Brien to jump ship. Out producers Craig Zadan and Neil Meron hope to woo Rob Marshall, who received an Oscar nomination for directing the duo's screen musical of Chicago, to step in. Marshall will become available after Friday, when he submits his cut of Memoirs of a Geisha to executives at Columbia Pictures. Oddly enough, Mitchell and O'Brien--who had to abandon the movie after the date change because of commitments to stage productions--stepped in as choreographer and director, respectively, of the stage musical Hairspray after Marshall, who originally developed the show, left to direct the Chicago movie. Hairspray, based on the stage musical that was in turn based on the film comedy by John Waters, is set to hit theaters in the summer of 2007.