Strike smites Howard's 'Angels & Demons'

LOS ANGELES -- Columbia Pictures says it is delaying production of its sequel to the blockbuster, "The Da Vinci Code," because of the U.S. writers' strike.

The screen adaptation of Dan Brown's thriller, "Angels & Demons" -- to be directed by "Da Vinci" vet Ron Howard -- is set in the Vatican and will again star Tom Hanks as Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon.

The studio released a statement to the Los Angeles Times describing the script for the film as "very strong," but adding, "We do not believe it is the fully-realized production draft required of this ambitious project."

Filming was slated to begin in February. The studio said it has not settled on a new start date, although a tentative release date of May 15, 2009 has been set.

The Writers Guild of America has been on strike since Nov. 5 against Hollywood studios, producers and TV networks.

Copyright 2007 by United Press International