Columbia drops Pitt's 'Moneyball'

Brad Pitt and Steven Soderbergh's baseball drama Moneyball has been dropped by Columbia Pictures.

Studio co-chairman Amy Pascal reportedly axed the movie, which was due to start production today, after objecting to changes Soderbergh made to Steve Zallian's script, says The Hollywood Reporter.

Based on Michael Lewis's non-fiction book, Moneyball revolves around Oakland Athletics general manager Bill Beane, who built a successful baseball team on a shoestring budget using an advanced computer system.

Soderbergh had already cast Pitt as Beane, comic Demetri Martin as talent scout Paul De Podesta, and several baseball players in the movie. He filmed interviews with famous baseball figures to weave into the narrative, an idea that Pascal allegedly disliked because she felt it lacked emotion.

Soderbergh has since offered the Moneyball project to rival studios Warner Bros and Paramount in a bid to keep the production on track.