 When this modern remake was first conceived in 1990  James Cameron (I) (qv) was originally offered the chance to  direct. When he passed Tim Burton (I) (qv) was connected for a few  years, with Joe Johnston (I) (qv)s name bandied about for some  time also. Then Jan de Bont (qv) was attached and set to direct  but his budget for the film, estimated at $150 million, was higher  than the studio was willing to pay. After he was let go,  Roland Emmerich (qv) and Dean Devlin (I) came in.