During his long career, Canadian and American filmmaker Shawn Levy has worked on several projects which never progressed beyond the pre-production stage under his direction. Some of these projects fell in development hell, were officially canceled or would see life under a different production team.

2000s Zits In July 2002, it was reported that Levy would direct the film adaptation of the comic strip Zits for Universal Pictures, with Adam 'Tex' Davis hired to write the screenplay.

Fever Pitch

By August 24, 2002, Levy was attached to direct a Boston-set film adaptation of author Nick Hornby's book Fever Pitch (1992), which had previously been adapted by Hornby (who would also serve as executive producer) into a 1997 British film of the same name, which Levy's film would also serve as a remake of. Gwyneth Paltrow was approached to play the female lead, but ultimately rejected the role as she found the script mediocre. On May 13, 2003, Brian Robbins signed on to direct the project, replacing Levy. The film was ultimately directed by the Farrelly brothers and would star Drew Barrymore and Jimmy Fallon.

Overtime On January 16, 2003, it was announced that Levy would direct the sports film Overtime, written by Sheldon Turner, for Warner Bros. Pictures, and would reunite with his Just Married star Ashton Kutcher on the project.

Father Knows Less On September 27, 2004, it was announced that Levy would direct the comedy Father Knows Less for New Line Cinema, based on a pitch by Aline Brosh McKenna. It was reported that Levy would be paid $5 million up front against 5% of the gross. On March 27, 2005, it was reported that Dustin Hoffman was final negotiations to play the lead role in the film.

21

On September 1, 2005, it was announced that Levy had been offered a pay-or-play deal by Sony Pictures to direct 21, after original director Brett Ratner departed the project to direct X-Men: The Last Stand. The film, produced by Kevin Spacey's Trigger Street Productions, would eventually be directed by Robert Luketic with Spacey starring.

Me, Me, Me On April 18, 2006, it was reported that New Line Cinema had acquired the comedy pitch Me, Me, Me by Jimmy Rosenthal, and had set Levy and his 21 Laps Entertainment to produce the project, with the project being developed as a potential directing vehicle.

The Talent Thief On November 27, 2006, Levy was set to direct a film adaptation of the Alex Williams fantasy novel The Talent Thief for Universal Pictures, with Levy producing through his 21 Laps Entertainment company and Matt Manfredi and Phil Hay writing the screenplay.

Father Figure Also on November 27, 2006, it was reported that Levy's 21 Laps Entertainment had signed a deal with 20th Century Fox to produce the original comedy drama Father Figure, written by Mark Friedman. On November 14, 2007, it was announced that Levy would direct the film as well, with Tom McCarthy performing rewrites.

The Institution TV pilot In addition to The Talent Thief and Father Figure, 21 Laps Entertainment reportedly set up a Fox network deal for the pilot script The Institution, a single-camera half-hour series from Levy and Chris Moynihan that focuses on three couples as they weather the highs and lows of matrimony.

The Swim Team TV pilot Another Levy project announced to be in development in November 2006 was the sitcom The Swim Team, created by Rich Appel, for CBS.

The Flash

On February 5, 2007, it was announced that Levy would direct superhero film The Flash for Warner Bros. Pictures and producers Charles Roven and Alex Gartner; Levy replaced David S. Goyer, who had been attached to write and direct the film but had dropped out several months before, with elements of Goyer's script expected to be retained while Levy oversaw the writing of a new script. In October 2007, Levy left the project, which led to David Dobkin retooling the project as a spinoff of George Miller's canceled Justice League: Mortal film. In September 2011, Levy told Collider that he had overseen development of a draft on the film for three and a half months, but eventually felt he needed to do more films first before taking on such a project, stating: "I was still the family comedy guy. And I just felt like, I gotta get a few more under my belt before I can claim the legitimacy of making a movie like that." Levy would add in July 2024 that he frequently gets offered IP-related projects but usually rejects them as "I need to feel that I see a story worth telling". A film centered on the Flash character was ultimately produced as part of the DC Extended Universe (DCEU), with Andy Muschietti as the director. The film was released in theatres by Warner Bros. on June 16, 2023.

The Hardy Men Also on February 5, 2007, it was reported that Levy would direct Ben Stiller and Tom Cruise in The Hardy Men for 20th Century Fox, a buddy action comedy based on The Hardy Boys mystery novels, and centered on the adult versions of the brothers as they solve a new mystery. Simon Kinberg was hired to overhaul the film's screenplay in April, with the project expected to begin production in January 2008. In February 2009, it was announced that Ed Solomon would rewrite the script. In September 2011, Levy said he had still not been able to "crack" the script, and described the project as his "long-gestating tragedy".

The Seems On April 16, 2007, it was announced that Levy would direct and produce the fantasy film The Seems for 20th Century Fox, based on the novel by John Hulme and Michael Wexler, who would also write the screenplay for the project.

The Way Back

On April 30, 2007, it was announced Levy would direct the coming-of-age comedy-drama The Way Back, written by Jim Rash and Nat Faxon, for Fox Searchlight Pictures, with production expected to begin in mid-June. However, by July 21, 2008, it was reported that the project had moved to Mandate Pictures, and that Levy would only serve as producer instead. Screenwriters Rash and Faxon would eventually direct the project themselves, which was ultimately retitled The Way, Way Back and released in theatres on July 5, 2013.

The Ten Best Days of My Life On December 4, 2008, it was announced that Levy would produce the feature film adaptation of the Adena Halpern novel The Ten Best Days of My Life alongside Amy Adams for 20th Century Fox, with Adams also set to star in the project and Levy potentially directing. Levy discussed the project in February 2012, stating that he and Adams were looking to find the right screenplay for the project before moving forward with it.

Neighborhood Watch

On September 12, 2008, it was announced Levy's 21 Laps Entertainment would set up the comedy Neighborhood Watch for 20th Century Fox, with the project being developed as a potential directing vehicle for Levy. The film was ultimately directed by Akiva Schaeffer and released on July 27, 2012 as The Watch, with Levy serving as a producer.

How to Talk to Girls On January 22, 2009, it was reported that Levy would produce the film adaptation of Alec Greven's book How to Talk to Girls for 20th Century Fox, and would develop the project as a potential directing vehicle. However, on February 22, 2012, Levy declared the project was "not for me to direct".

2010s The Deadliest Warrior On September 16, 2010, it was announced that Levy would produce a feature film based on the Spike TV television series Deadliest Warrior for Paramount Pictures, and was also eyeing the project as a potential directing vehicle. On January 20, 2011, it was announced that J. D. Payne and Patrick McKay were hired to write the screenplay. In February 2012, Levy told Collider that a script had just been turned in to Paramount, and that he would likely only serve as producer, though he also expressed hope that the film could enter production that year.

Untitled action adventure film On February 3, 2011, it was announced that 20th Century Fox had acquired an original action adventure pitch by Carlton Cuse for Hugh Jackman to star and Levy to produce and direct. On February 22, Levy said that "Carlton came in and he pitched me a crazy, wildly imaginative adventure thriller, and I heard it and I'm like 'That's a big movie' and I took it to Hugh, and then Carlton told Hugh the idea and Hugh's like 'I'm in'." Levy also stated that he had "high hopes" for the project, having given Cuse notes to work from for another draft of the script.

Fantastic Voyage remake On February 7, 2011, it was announced that Levy had been selected to direct a remake of the science fiction film Fantastic Voyage (1966) by producer James Cameron and 20th Century Fox, with Laeta Kalogridis polishing a screenplay by Shane Salerno; Levy was to have replaced Paul Greengrass. In February 2012, Levy said the project was more difficult to move forward, but reiterated his intentions to direct it. On January 7, 2016, it was announced that Guillermo del Toro would be taking over as director, with David S. Goyer now writing the screenplay.

Home Movies On June 7, 2011, it was announced that Tom McCarthy would rewrite the screenplay for Home Movies, a supernatural comedy drama being produced by Levy's 21 Laps Entertainment for DreamWorks Pictures, from initial drafts by Jared Stern. By February 20, 2012, McCarthy was still in the process of rewriting the script for Levy and DreamWorks; Levy described the project as "a really interesting blend of a big, high-concept Hollywood-y idea, 'What if you could re-live your home movies?', but with Tom McCarthy's voice and specificity of characters."

Frankenstein

On August 24, 2011, it was announced that Levy was entering talks with 20th Century Fox to direct a new film based on Frankenstein, from a screenplay by Max Landis. In February 2012, during an interview with Collider, Levy described the project as being more difficult to move forward due to complexities surrounding casting, scripting, and its larger budget. The project would eventually be directed by Paul McGuigan and released on November 25, 2015, as Victor Frankenstein, with Levy ultimately uninvolved.

The Three Misfortunes of Geppetto On October 14, 2011, it was announced that 20th Century Fox had acquired the spec script The Three Misfortunes of Geppetto, a prequel to The Adventures of Pinocchio written by Mike Vukadinovich centered around Geppetto, as a directing vehicle for Levy. On February 24, 2012, during an interview with Collider, Levy stated that he did not know if he would direct the project himself, and that he had met with other directors about the project.

The Cannonball Run reboot On October 18, 2011, it was reported that Levy had expressed interest in directing a reboot of The Cannonball Run for Warner Bros. Pictures to star Ben Stiller; Guy Ritchie was also reported to have entered talks with the studio about directing the project. On February 24, 2012, Levy confirmed he had been interested in two years prior, and had discussed the project with original producer Albert S. Ruddy with plans to cast Stiller and Owen Wilson, but that it was not something he was now involved in. On March 15, 2016, it was reported that Etan Cohen had been hired to write and direct the reboot, titled Cannonball, with Andre Morgan and Alan Gasner set to produce, until June 4, 2018, when Doug Liman was offered to direct the reboot.

The 39 Clues On May 10, 2012, it was announced that Levy would direct an adaptation of The 39 Clues series of novels for DreamWorks Pictures, from a screenplay by Jeff Nathanson. On August 20, 2013, it was announced that Universal Pictures were in talks to acquire the rights to the series out of turnaround from DreamWorks, with Levy not involved.

Sesame Street