Justice for Love (2023 film)

Justice for Love is an unmade 2023 American apocalyptic drama film that was to be produced by Paramount Pictures. It is supposed to be a remake of the 2020 film #JusticeForLove: End of the World by Toho and GMA Pictures. The project was the first attempt to produce an American remake of #JusticeForLove: End of the World.

In the film, a renowned celebrity tries to find closure in her life as she befriends a depressed woman attempting to reunite with her family while an asteroid threatens to impact Earth. Unlike the original film which takes place in San Francisco and the Philippines, the film mostly takes place in New York City.

Plot

 * Taken from the film's screenplay, marked as first draft.

The film takes place mostly in New York City approximately three months after the discovery of a 10-kilometer asteroid on a collision course with Earth, with small asteroid fragments destroying the cities of Tokyo and San Francisco. The United States and Russia attempt to deflect the asteroid by launching intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs).

Renowned celebrity Emily appears to have the perfect life she wanted; married, popular, and rich. However, the asteroid threat has severely affected her career, as more and more people are concerned with the imminent end of the world. One day, an emergency broadcast informs the world that the attempt to deflect the asteroid has failed, and the asteroid is projected to impact somewhere in western Europe in approximately one week, triggering an extinction-level event.

Emily and her husband Michael decide to spend their remaining week at their vacation home in Maine, but while on the Grand Central Terminal, Michael confesses to Emily that he's having an affair with a woman named Heather for some time, and finally abandons their marriage as he boards the last train to Philadelphia instead. Feeling dejected, Emily returns home, and with all her friends and co-workers refuse to leave their loved ones, she is left alone.

The next day, the streets of New York City are all deserted, and stores have been looted. While attempting to visit a friend in New Jersey, Emily encounters a man looking for a cab, as all modes of public transportation have been suspended. Realizing that some people are stranded, Emily decides to help the man reach his destination in Queens, while she realises that she enjoys doing good deeds.

Emily continues driving stranded people to their destinations around New York City. One day, she meets a depressed woman named Sarah, and befriends her. It is revealed that Sarah is a big fan of Emily, is actually from Boston, and is attempting to reunite with her mother. With nowhere else to go, Sarah asks if she could stay in Emily's apartment for the time being, which she accepts.

At the Empire State Building, Emily reveals to Sarah that it reminds her of her first love interest, Alex, which she last met at the building's 86th floor observatory back in 1998, and she never saw him again afterwards. Emily kept returning to the Empire State Building every year, in the hopes of meeting Alex again and confessing her feelings to him.

Sarah is later informed that her mother has died, and begins to realize that she was too late, and attempts to commit suicide. Rather than killing herself, Sarah decides to spend the remaining days with Emily, as the world is going to end regardless, and after discovering Emily's loneliness. The two begin to take care of each other, as the asteroid finally impacts Earth.

In her final moments, Emily realizes that the impending apocalypse made her further understand or appreciate the people in her life. Both Emily and Sarah embrace their deaths as the firestorm approaches the city, 30 minutes after the asteroid's impact. They are vaporized instantly while the rest of New York City is obliterated by the firestorm.

The film ends on shots of Earth from outer space, as the firestorm continues engulfing the planet, signifying the end of the world.

Production
Following the phenomenal success of the original film, Paramount Pictures became interested in doing an American remake of the film, with a big budget and A-list actors. This would also be a great next step to follow up on the success of Don't Look Up, which Paramount originally planned to release theatrically.

Paramount hired John Krasinski to direct the film, who previously directed A Quiet Place and its sequel, and hired Chris Sparling to write the film's screenplay. Sparling previously wrote Greenland, that was released around the same month as the original film. For the lead role, Krasinski approached actress Alicia Silverstone. Silverstone was previously approached for a cameo in the original film, but declined.

They also intended to closely follow the original film, albeit changing the characters and the setting, while keeping the general plot of the original. The film is meant to show how people would react to an imminent global catastrophic event, more similar to the films Last Night and Seeking a Friend for the End of the World, while removing the asteroid impact avoidance themes from the original. A concept poster depicting a deserted Times Square was released in the United States to generate interest for the project.

However, they would soon learn that Toho signed a deal with Legendary Pictures to produce their own remake of the film with a tentative release date of 2026. Paramount proceeded to sue both Toho and Legendary for the rights to the Justice for Love duology, claiming that they had a written contract to produce their own remake; however, Toho denied such a deal.

Eventually, a federal judge ruled that Legendary did in fact have the rights to produce a remake of #JusticeForLove: End of the World. This forced Paramount to abandon its plans for the film.

Trivia

 * While the plot remains similar to the original, it contains numerous nods to the 1995 film Clueless, produced by Paramount and also starring Silverstone. For instance, the entire film is narrated by the protagonist, befriends another woman and decides to help her, and the film's final act focuses on the protagonist reexamining her own existence shortly before the world ends.
 * The film is alluded to in the 2022 film Senior Year also by Paramount, despite the film being scrapped before filming could begin. Each functions as a form of subtle foreshadowing.
 * In Stephanie's room, a movie poster of Clueless could be seen. The plot of the film has multiple references to Clueless.
 * Later, Stephanie goes to a movie theater playing Deep Impact. During the movie theater scene, short clips from Deep Impact were shown, including the scene depicting New York City being destroyed by a megatsunami. Both films are about impact events, a comet in the former, and an asteroid in the latter. The film's main setting is also New York City, and the final scene of the film shows the city being obliterated by the firestorm rather than a megatsunami.
 * Alicia Silverstone appearing in a short cameo appearance references the film's supposed protagonist, also to be portrayed by Silverstone.
 * The film also references the 2007 adaptation of I Am Legend, as the film showcases a deserted New York City, as most people spend their final moments with their loved ones, leaving all streets devoid of people.
 * The final scene is a direct reference to the 2022 short film The Final Moments, depicting the protagonists being vaporized instantly while a major city is obliterated by the firestorm (Manila, New York City).
 * It is not known if the film would actually show the asteroid impacting Earth or not.
 * The film would have served as a tribute to Alicia Silverstone's film career, as she made her film debut in The Crush, released in 1993, and its 30th anniversary since release is 2023.
 * Each of the landmarks depicted being destroyed during the firestorm scene has a certain importance in Emily's life:
 * Grand Central Terminal is where Emily's husband abandons their marriage.
 * Times Square, being the entertainment capital, is Emily's workplace.
 * Empire State Building reminds Emily of her first love interest.