Even living legends can have their dream projects trashed by studios.

Warren Beatty‘s latest project has moved from Paramount Pictures to New Regency. He has written and plans on producing, directing and starring in a movie about the later years of reclusive billionaire Howard Hughes.

Beatty declined to comment on why the picture is no longer at Paramount. He did say that the movie is about Hughes, but is not a biopic.

Brad Weston, New Regency’s president and CEO, said that Beatty and New Regency founder Arnon Milchan have been talking “for years” about making this movie. He also said New Regency recently acquired the picture. A spokesman for Paramount also confirmed the picture’s move. New Regency is partly owned by and has a distribution deal with Fox.

There had been talk that Alec Baldwin (who co-starred in the Hughes biopic The Aviator) and Jack Nicholson (longtime friend of Beatty) were interested in playing roles in the upcoming film.

Paramount’s chairman and CEO, Brad Grey, announced in June that the Oscar-winner would make the film.

At the time, Grey issued a statement saying, “Warren’s script is quintessentially Beatty, elegantly written and wonderfully entertaining,. It is our privilege to have one of the great artists in the history of the film industry come home to Paramount.”

The 74-year-old Beatty won the Academy Award for directing the 1981 “Reds.” He last directed 1998 “Bulworth,” which he also starred in, wrote and produced. He has not been involved in making or starring in movies in over 10 years.

His Howard Hughes project is expected to begin filming later this year, with an eye towards a Fall 2012 release.