Opie does The Dark Tower - Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community

warrrreagl · 05-04-2010, 06:08 AM

I saw this on The Hollywood Reporter's Heat Vision blog:

Quote:

April 29, 2010
'Dark Tower' by Ron Howard, Brian Grazer and Akiva Goldsman (exclusive)

UPDATED

By Borys Kit and Ace Fernandez

J.J. Abrams’ Bad Robot shingle, which has long sought to crack Stephen King’s “The Dark Tower” book series as a television series, no longer has the rights to one of the author’s biggest properties.

Bad Robot has returned the rights back to the best-selling author. Now Ron Howard, Brian Grazer and Akiva Goldsman are teaming up to tackle the fantasy Western.

The three are in discussions on a scenario that would see an adaptation begin as a movie, to be written by Goldsman and directed by Howard, that would lead to a TV series produced by Imagine’s small-screen division.

“Tower” is not set up, nor has any option deal been made, but insiders say Universal, home to Imagine, would be the studio that will release the movie.

That would be a contrast to the vision drawn up by Bad Robot, which had been eyeing their potential series as a reunion with “Lost” exec producers Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse. Because of the comprehensive nature of the project, the creators wanted to wait until “Lost” was over to give it their attention. When they realized they wouldn't be able to do an adaptation justice, they gave the rights back to King.

King’s magnum opus, “Tower” encompasses not just a narrative about the Man in Black and Roland, the Gunslinger, that spans seven lengthy books (and one short story), but also the entire universe of King’s fiction. Characters from his other novels flit in and out of “Tower” in minor and major ways.

Envisioned when King was still in his teens as his own take on spaghetti Westerns and the world of Tolkien’s “Lord of the Rings,” “Tower” has also spawned a series of graphic novels from Marvel Comics, with the latest issue hitting shelves May 19. The property’s expansive nature and direct connection to King’s other works make it one of the biggest, ripest franchise possibilities in entertainment.

This is way too cool. Although I was disappointed to see Abrams pull out of the project, I completely respect Opie well enough to know how to do this. From the way this reads, it will begin with an initial movie that would lead to a TV series. Then, if it became big enough, they would wrap it up with another movie.

I also read where Stephen King is finishing up another Dark Tower novel, which would be sort of Dark Tower 4.5 (set sometime after the end of Wizard and Glass). This gives the story more flesh and easier to realize for television.

Wow. I'm pumped.

Plan9 · 05-04-2010, 08:04 AM

As a Stephen King fanboy, it's obvious that it'll either be a gnarly smashing success (Christine, It)...

...or a total my-god-why?!-aborted-zombie-baby-train-wreck failure on celluloid (The Dark Half).

FoolThemAll · 05-04-2010, 12:38 PM

What? It was terrible. Pennywise was great, but you can't get a decent movie with only one decent facet.

I feel a little worry that it might turn out like the newer version of the Shining, wherein the plot is very faithful and well-done, but characters (particularly the wife) are lifeless and/or poorly casted. I mean, as badly as Kubrick mangled the ending of the Shining, he NAILED the wife.

(or so I hear)

I'm mostly optimistic, though.

Vaultboy · 05-04-2010, 09:49 PM

For a movie, Wizard and Glass is probably the best place to start.

FuglyStick · 05-04-2010, 10:11 PM

I wasn't keen on Howard's Dan Brown phase; we shall see, I suppose...

docbungle · 05-05-2010, 12:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Plan9

As a Stephen King fanboy, it's obvious that it'll either be a gnarly smashing success (Christine, It)...

...or a total my-god-why?!-aborted-zombie-baby-train-wreck failure on celluloid (The Dark Half).

Well. Christine and It (mini-series) are two of the worst King films I can think of. The best are Cujo and The Dead Zone and...well, that's about it. For some reason no one seems to be able to translate King's stuff successfully to the screen.

Ron Howard has talent. He should be able to do this (We'll just act like The Da Vinci Code didn't happen). I'm especially looking forward to seeing The Drawing of The Three on the screen. By far the best Dark Tower book IMHO.

warrrreagl · 05-05-2010, 01:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by docbungle

For some reason no one seems to be able to translate King's stuff successfully to the screen.

I disagree completely. Carrie, Pet Semetary, Storm of the Century, 1408, Chidren of the Corn, Rose Red, Secret Window, Hearts in Atlantis, The Green Mile, The Mist, The Stand, Stand By Me, Misery, Shawshank Redemption...

fresnelly · 05-05-2010, 05:25 AM

I'm keeping an open mind. After all, as great at the series was, the ending was...unfortunate.

If you want an epic literal adaptation that treats the books as rigid canon, recreates every character and plot point and lives up to your own imagination, then you will be surely disappointed.

Any screen adaptation can only be just that: an adaptation. I just hope they take the spirit of what's best in the stories and hire great talent and let it breathe.

warrrreagl · 05-05-2010, 06:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fresnelly

I'm keeping an open mind. After all, as great at the series was, the ending was...unfortunate.

Which ending? The way he wanted to end it (with the hot chocolate in Central Park and the two Toren brothers), or the reader-indulgent part after that?

I would prefer the Central Park ending on film...

Reese · 05-05-2010, 07:33 AM

I just looked over the list of adaptations and besides the 2-3 that I haven't seen I didn't hate any of them. Stand By Me and Shawshank Redemption are two excellent films. Others like Cujo, Cats Eye, Creepshow 2, and It, and The Shining haunted me as a kid. They all had elements that terrified me. To this day I can't watch that scene in Cujo where that kid flips out and won't stop screaming. Creepshow 2 had the Raft with that damn slime monster. Let's just say you won't see me swimming up to objects floating around in a lake. Tim Curry as Pennywise is one of the best monsters ever.

I have faith in Ron Howard. I just want to see this movie made. It's cool that he's thinking ahead and planning out a TV series as a continuation.

Jove · 05-05-2010, 10:51 AM

I wasn't exactly pleased with the ending of the Dark Tower series, but I found it rather amusing how the characters had a mission to save Stephen King from getting hit by a van otherwise their universe would have ended.

fresnelly · 05-05-2010, 11:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by warrrreagl

Which ending? The way he wanted to end it (with the hot chocolate in Central Park and the two Toren brothers), or the reader-indulgent part after that?

I would prefer the Central Park ending on film...

I was thinking more of the weak depiction of the Crimson King and all the business with Stephen King himself inside the story.

I don't really have the right to say this but I wonder if the traume of his real-life accident robbed him of the true ending of the story; one that would have been epic and contained to the existing characters without interference.

To be fair he worked himself in much better than that scoundrel Clive Cussler, who masturbates himself into his stories like some sort of godlike matinee idol. The first time I came across one of those passages I wanted to reach in through the pages and grab him by the throat.

Derwood · 05-05-2010, 01:11 PM

Wizard and Glass was my least favorite book in the series. King was stalling the main story with 400 pages of back story that didn't interest me in the least

Charlatan · 05-05-2010, 03:55 PM

You guys are also forgetting about the awesomeness that is: The Running Man

Reese · 05-07-2010, 02:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Charlatan

You guys are also forgetting about the awesomeness that is: The Running Man

I just watched the Running Man the other day. I love that movie. It's got so many cheesy lines in it. I swear Ben Richards should hook up with Horatio Caine and have 1 liner contest.

warrrreagl · 05-07-2010, 05:28 AM

So who should play whom? I have to admit, I've wasted a lot of time thinking about potential casting for The Dark Tower, and here's what I've got:

Thomas Jane as Roland Deschain. Jane has already starred in two of King's film adaptations (Dreamcatcher and The Mist) and is perfect for Roland. Plus, there's that amazingly cool scene at the beginning of The Mist where Jane's character has been working on an original painting that is obviously poster art for The Dark Tower. It would be the perfect "ka is a wheel" connection.

Dominic Monaghan as Eddie Dean. Monaghan plays Charlie in the TV series Lost, and has proven he can play a funny yet deadly heroin addict. If only he can pull of a Co-op City accent...

Zoe Saldana as Susannah/Odetta/Detta. She played Uhura in Star Trek, and Neytiri in Avatar, and she's definitely the most kick-ass black female actress out there.

Kodi Smit-McPhee as Jake Chambers. The kid knocked me out in his portrayal of The Boy in The Road, and I've thought he was perfect for Jake ever since I saw him.

Matthew Fox as Flagg/Marten/Walter. I'm a little on the fence about this one, but I'm going with the fact that he can definitely turn on the creepy vibe when it's needed. When he smiles, you don't ever believe him.

Jeremy Irons as Father Callahan. He's perfect, plus he would bring a lot of depth to a character who grows on me more and more each time I read it.

Vaultboy · 05-17-2010, 09:51 PM

Personally, Roland's ka-tet were more experienced in my mind's eye, so I feel that your cast (With the exception of Irons) is too young, and Kodi actually looks too old. But I haven't thought up a cast yet.

On another note: Was JJ Abrams perhaps using Fringe as an opportunity to test a few The Dark Tower concepts on? The storyline for me departed quite quickly from "The Pattern" down the parallel world + "thinnies" + breaking the beams scenario. I mean, there were a number of possible options that they could have taken the plot, instead of turning ZFT and Massive Dynamic on its head like they did.

05-04-2010, 08:04 AM	#2 (permalink)
Plan9 I Confess a Shiver	As a Stephen King fanboy, it's obvious that it'll either be a gnarly smashing success (Christine, It)... ...or a total my-god-why?!-aborted-zombie-baby-train-wreck failure on celluloid (The Dark Half). __________________ *Whatever you can carry.* "You should not drink... and bake."

05-04-2010, 12:38 PM	#3 (permalink)
FoolThemAll Walking is Still Honest Location: Seattle, WA	What? It was terrible. Pennywise was great, but you can't get a decent movie with only one decent facet. I feel a little worry that it might turn out like the newer version of the Shining, wherein the plot is very faithful and well-done, but characters (particularly the wife) are lifeless and/or poorly casted. I mean, as badly as Kubrick mangled the ending of the Shining, he NAILED the wife. (or so I hear) I'm mostly optimistic, though. __________________ I wonder if we're stuck in Rome.

05-04-2010, 09:49 PM	#4 (permalink)
Vaultboy Addict Location: Third World	For a movie, Wizard and Glass is probably the best place to start. __________________ "Failing tastes of bile and dog vomit. Pity any man that gets used to that taste."

05-04-2010, 10:11 PM	#5 (permalink)
FuglyStick WHEEEE! Whee! Whee! WHEEEE! Location: Southern Illinois	I wasn't keen on Howard's Dan Brown phase; we shall see, I suppose... __________________ AZIZ! LIGHT!

05-05-2010, 05:25 AM	#8 (permalink)
fresnelly Functionally Appropriate Location: Toronto	I'm keeping an open mind. After all, as great at the series was, the ending was...unfortunate. If you want an epic literal adaptation that treats the books as rigid canon, recreates every character and plot point and lives up to your own imagination, then you will be surely disappointed. Any screen adaptation can only be just that: an adaptation. I just hope they take the spirit of what's best in the stories and hire great talent and let it breathe. __________________ Building an artificial intelligence that appreciates Mozart is easy. Building an A.I. that appreciates a theme restaurant is the real challenge - Kit Roebuck - Nine Planets Without Intelligent Life

05-05-2010, 07:33 AM	#10 (permalink)
Reese Delicious	I just looked over the list of adaptations and besides the 2-3 that I haven't seen I didn't hate any of them. Stand By Me and Shawshank Redemption are two excellent films. Others like Cujo, Cats Eye, Creepshow 2, and It, and The Shining haunted me as a kid. They all had elements that terrified me. To this day I can't watch that scene in Cujo where that kid flips out and won't stop screaming. Creepshow 2 had the Raft with that damn slime monster. Let's just say you won't see me swimming up to objects floating around in a lake. Tim Curry as Pennywise is one of the best monsters ever. I have faith in Ron Howard. I just want to see this movie made. It's cool that he's thinking ahead and planning out a TV series as a continuation. __________________ “It is better to be rich and healthy than poor and sick” - Dave Barry

05-05-2010, 10:51 AM	#11 (permalink)
Jove Groovy Hipster Nerd Location: Michigan	I wasn't exactly pleased with the ending of the Dark Tower series, but I found it rather amusing how the characters had a mission to save Stephen King from getting hit by a van otherwise their universe would have ended.

05-05-2010, 01:11 PM	#13 (permalink)
Derwood Who You Crappin? Location: Everywhere and Nowhere	Wizard and Glass was my least favorite book in the series. King was stalling the main story with 400 pages of back story that didn't interest me in the least __________________ "You can't shoot a country until it becomes a democracy." - Willravel

05-05-2010, 03:55 PM	#14 (permalink)
Charlatan Getting it. Super Moderator Location: Lion City	You guys are also forgetting about the awesomeness that is: The Running Man __________________ "My hands are on fire. Hands are on fire. Ain't got no more time for all you charlatans and liars." - Old Man Luedecke

05-07-2010, 05:28 AM	#16 (permalink)
warrrreagl pinche vato Location: backwater, Third World, land of cotton	So who should play whom? I have to admit, I've wasted a lot of time thinking about potential casting for The Dark Tower, and here's what I've got: Thomas Jane as Roland Deschain. Jane has already starred in two of King's film adaptations (Dreamcatcher and The Mist) and is perfect for Roland. Plus, there's that amazingly cool scene at the beginning of The Mist where Jane's character has been working on an original painting that is obviously poster art for The Dark Tower. It would be the perfect "ka is a wheel" connection. Dominic Monaghan as Eddie Dean. Monaghan plays Charlie in the TV series Lost, and has proven he can play a funny yet deadly heroin addict. If only he can pull of a Co-op City accent... Zoe Saldana as Susannah/Odetta/Detta. She played Uhura in Star Trek, and Neytiri in Avatar, and she's definitely the most kick-ass black female actress out there. Kodi Smit-McPhee as Jake Chambers. The kid knocked me out in his portrayal of The Boy in The Road, and I've thought he was perfect for Jake ever since I saw him. Matthew Fox as Flagg/Marten/Walter. I'm a little on the fence about this one, but I'm going with the fact that he can definitely turn on the creepy vibe when it's needed. When he smiles, you don't ever believe him. Jeremy Irons as Father Callahan. He's perfect, plus he would bring a lot of depth to a character who grows on me more and more each time I read it. __________________ Living is easy with eyes closed.

05-17-2010, 09:51 PM	#17 (permalink)
Vaultboy Addict Location: Third World	Personally, Roland's ka-tet were more experienced in my mind's eye, so I feel that your cast (With the exception of Irons) is too young, and Kodi actually looks too old. But I haven't thought up a cast yet. On another note: Was JJ Abrams perhaps using Fringe as an opportunity to test a few The Dark Tower concepts on? The storyline for me departed quite quickly from "The Pattern" down the parallel world + "thinnies" + breaking the beams scenario. I mean, there were a number of possible options that they could have taken the plot, instead of turning ZFT and Massive Dynamic on its head like they did. __________________ "Failing tastes of bile and dog vomit. Pity any man that gets used to that taste."