Source: Variety

High School Musical 3 and This is It director Kenny Ortega has left Paramount Pictures' remake of Footloose over disagreements between himself and the studio about the tone and budget of the film.

The film has TV star Chase Crawford attached to play the Kevin Bacon role and was slated to start shooting in March when the actor's schedule opened up. Ortega, however, wanted a more expensive movie than the studio ($30 million vs. $25 million), and Ortega planned to stage elaborate musical setpieces while Paramount wanted more of a drama. Says a studio rep: "Coming off the extraordinary project, Michael Jackson's This is It, director Kenny Ortega has decided it is premature for him to commit to his next film and will not be moving forward with Footloose as previously reported."

This is It should prove massively profitable for Ortega this weekend when it starts what is currently slated to be a two-week run. Meanwhile, should Paramount find a suitable replacement in time, Footloose is (very) tentatively slated for June 18th, 2010.