Denzel Washington May Be 'Unstoppable' After All

Academy Award winning actor Denzel Washington, who withdrew from the Tony Scott-directed drama "Unstoppable" nearly two weeks ago, is close to a compromise with the studio which would him back on the project.

According to Variety.com, "Pre-production on the film has resumed in Pittsburgh. Washington has been attached since April to re-team with Scott and play a veteran engineer who jumps into a locomotive with a young conductor ("Star Trek's" Chris Pine) to stop a runaway train loaded with toxic cargo that is going fast enough to derail when the train reaches a hairpin turn. The resulting spill will destroy a nearby town. The Mark Bomback script is based on true events.'"

The reason Washington left the film was due to Fox being adamant that the budget be cut to $90 million, which would mean salary concessions for both Washington and Scott. It has been reported that the studio asked Washington to trim $4 million off of his upfront salary. He declined and his WME agent Ed Limato went in search of another property to fill Washington's fall window.

The Variety.com article goes on to say, "Washington went off with Scott to promote 'The Taking of Pelham 123' in Europe, and he took a fresh draft of the script with him. He and Scott kept talking, and Fox and Washington's WME reps found some common deal-making ground. Both parties found ways to be flexible. As a result, Fox has salvaged the fall start date on a priority film that the studio has invested years developing.'"