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EXCLUSIVE: Universal Pictures has pushed this year’s start date on the Ron Howard-directed adaptation of Stephen King’s mammoth novel series Dark Tower until February, I’m told. It was supposed to start this summer. The studio will work with the filmmakers to reduce the budget on a series that will include three feature films and two limited-run TV series. Universal has its own ticking clock: It must greenlight the film by July, or the rights revert back to the author and the filmmakers. Recent speculation had Universal contemplating putting the film in turnaround. That hasn’t happened, yet. Akiva Goldsman wrote the Dark Tower script, and Brian Grazer is producing with Goldsman. Javier Bardem has been set to play gunslinger Roland Deschain. The original plan by Universal, to mount a movie trilogy and limited-run TV series, is arguably the most ambitious Hollywood project since New Line and Peter Jackson shot three installments of The Lord of the Rings in one long shoot.
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Translation: the script sucks.
Well, we are talking about Akiva Goldsman.
Yes, but does it suck as much as Willow? I cringe remembering what happened the last time Howard tried to rip off the Lord of the Rings.
LOL, Scribbler, you nailed it.
How about Howard and Co don’t make a dollar until they turn in something worthwhile…
Used to be his name meant quality– now it means SEE ON CABLE at best.
Almost no one, I don’t care how good they are, turns in a greenlight-able first draft on a movie this big. When the rest of the franchise hinges on the first movie being amazing, it’s too risky to go without a great screenplay.
This one ain’t happening for a while…if ever.
Is it wrong for me to be happy about this? I’m praying that universal fails to get its act together and the rights revert. I’m not sure I can put up with Hollywoods “interpretation” of these amazing books that I’ve been reading for over 20 years.
What a strange world we live in were people believe we shouldn’t even try to make something from nothing just because they are fans of a book. Lets just not make movies, how’d that be?
James, you are not alone in wanting this not to go forward. Nothing can compare to the world King created.
maybe this means universal has finaly relised if it wants to stay around in holly wood to quit letting what could make it unique and a leader on the map instead of a follwer. to wind up killing potential money makers. plus if nothing else the feb new start date will give the producers more time to tweak the scripts and try and get the dark tower right.
James, you’ve been reading these books for over20 years? I thought I was a slow reader.
I’ve been reading them for over 20 years too….several times through because it took 7 years to get the 5th book out. If I read them at a normal pace, it takes me about 3 months to get through all 7 books. And I’ve read it through about 5 times….(the first 4 books I’ve read about 8 times each! They are so epic!
Bob, The problem in your reply is the ‘something from nothing” part. This isn’t nothing. This is a world that has been crafted over the better part of 30 years. I’ve been reading these books since I was in the 6th grade and I turn 30 this year.
It’s not that we don’t want to see an adaption of the series. I think the idea of three movies with a tv series in between is genius. I also like most of the creative people involved. But I’ve been in this industry for over ten years now and I know how it works. The studio is already looking to trim the budget when they should be pouring more into it instead.
This is not a series they should “try” to do. This industry has been around for a long time. We’re not inventing something new. We’ve mad movies before and we all know what works and what doesn’t. We have the ability to do this and do it well right from the start. If they are going to start with the bean counting trumps art crap before it’s even greenlit then the project is already doomed.
And let’s not forget that the people who feel this way, people like me who are massive fans of this series, are why the movies are being made in the first place.
James, when I say something from nothing I mean it doesn’t exist in film form.
From what I can tell a lot of attention is being payed to what makes the books great and the casting of the lead is inspired.
If you truly know how this business works then you’ve gotta know that budget DOES trump all, and we all approach a project knowing that we have to work within certain limitations. Thats nothing new! Projects like these HAVE to be planned out carefully. (All the more surprising that they pulled the plug on prepro, thats where you get the most for your money)
Does this mean Bardem will have time to do Bond 23 after all?
yup seems like it
I, too, have spent the last two decades loving this story and eagerly awaiting each new chapter.
At this point, I don’t even care about the format or the budget. I want Javier freaking Bardem OUT. Out. Period.
If anyone can POSSIBLY play Roland (which is the single most important character to cast), the only name I’ve ever been able to come up with is Timothy Olyphant, and that was only after watching him play a modern day gunslinger on Justified. We can’t have Clint, but Olyphant will do.
Javier Bardem will not. Ugh. What’s next, Jada Pinkett-Smith for Susannah? No, this is just utter crap.
Nobody is going to greelight this without Burke at Comcast buying off, these guys all have new bosses and this is a huge gamble. Not many have pulled off King for the big screen (and so many people have read Kings’ books, disappointment is probable if not done well and will kill word of mouth). My bet is they are lining up co-financing partners to shed some risk. Merger = stall.
A lot of interesting stuff coming up with you guys talking, but most important OLYPHANT! Javier Bardem is a fantastic actor and stands a chance of doing a good Roland, but Timothy Olyphant would be perfect. It was written for Eastwood but Olyphant would be be the best choice.
Maybe they’ll get it on the 19th try…
I still have faith that it will happen in this format. Great idea for a story this dense with a lot of risk to the people who are funding it…. more time is needed to work out the risk.
King is even writing a new Dark Tower book as well (the story takes place in-between book 4 and 5)
If the Marvel adaptations over the past few years are any sign of how they plan to storyboard and write the script.. It will be fantastic
I think they should not make it a movie. I think it would be better to make the books into a Min-series on HBO. like how they’re doing Game of Thrones. I think It would be better because of how long the books are and just how much story there is and as a fan of the book, Javier Bardem is not right for Roland at all.
As a Dark Tower fan, I feel the need to say that adapting the first book for the screen poses a real challenge. The Dark Tower i’s a series about *four* characters–Roland, Eddie Dean, Susannah, and Jake–and neither Eddie Dean nor Susannah is anywhere present in the first book. There’s some great stuff in there–including the death of Jake–but I don’t know if you want to start a series with just Roland & Jake. Given the weirdly episodic feel of the book (and its origin as short stories), it’s worth considering combing this w/ Drawing of the Three, no?
I wouldn’t be too quick to criticize casting until I see how they handle the role. I remember laughing off Heath Ledger as the Joker, and Tom Hanks as Robert Langdon among others.
Greg makes a good point indeed. Seeing that they have proposed three films, it is most likely material from Gunslinger and Drawing of the Three will be merged. How this will be done is a difficult challenge (especially when telling Jake’s tale). I concur that Timothy Olyphant would be perfect as Roland. I would also like to see Ben Foster as Eddie Dean. Back to the point at hand – getting the first film right as a movie (considering that many who are new to Dark Tower will be watching), is the biggest challenge – getting that balance between staying faithful to the material, and making the narrative work as a movie is a huge hurdle. As someone stated before though, all this conjecturing about script/casting, is futile if the budget cannot be finalised. Im all for seeing this great saga adapted on-screen; and whoever is behind the project, I wish them (long days and pleasant nights) success (even if they are the team behind Dan Brown’s adaptations… the Tower is a path to redemption). The rest is Ka…
I dont understand why fans of the bookwouldnt want to see this in a movie?Im so excited but if it turns out being a bad movie its not going to change how much i like the books..Take it for what its worth..If theirs a few cool parts then ill be happy with those parts n forget the rest