Showbiz411

Exclusive: The long-aborning “Gotti” movie — to be directed by Barry Levinson — may have a new life. I am told that new producer Ted Field, who’s come in to save Marco Fiore (aka Marc Fiore), has been negotiating distribution rights with Summit Entertainment. Summit, home to the “Twilight” series, would be a good home for “Gotti.” But Field is still a long way off from pre-production. He still has to raise the money Fiore has squandered, pay all the bills, settle with Joe Pesci on his lawsuit, and get his house in order. At this point, everyone involved with “Gotti” is skeptical. Certainly, there are still issues with Salvatore Carpanzano, the man Fiore announced was executive producer and who was supposed to supply financing. In the meantime, Levinson, stars John Travolta and Al Pacino, and screenwriter James Toback, wait on tenterhooks for Field to save the day.

Roger Friedman

Roger Friedman began his Showbiz411 column in April 2009 after 10 years with Fox News. Friedman previously wrote the Intelligencer column at New York Magazine, He writes for Parade magazine and has written for Details, Vogue, the New York Times, Post, and Daily News and many other publications. He is the writer and co-producer of a film about R&B Music called “Only the Strong Survive,” which was released by Miramax in 2003 and was a selection of the Cannes, Sundance, and Telluride Film festivals.