Creating 'Women' a challenge

LOS ANGELES, May 31 (UPI) -- It's taken more than a decade to pull it together, but U.S. director Diane English finally is set to recreate "The Women."

Filming is expected to begin in August. While the cast is not set in stone, it looks like Meg Ryan, Annette Bening, Eva Mendes, Jada Pinkett Smith, Debra Messing and Candice Bergen either have signed or are close to signing, Variety reported Thursday.

The remake of the 1939 George Cukor film -- about how several female friends deal with the discovery that one of their husbands is cheating -- is budgeted for under $20 million, with bankrolling by Inferno Entertainment, Picturehouse and soapmaker Dove.

English also is handling the rewrite of the Clare Boothe Luce play and is listed as a producer, along with Victoria Pearman, Mick Jagger and Bill Johnson. Jim Seibel will be the executive producer.