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Dark Tower movie developments

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  • He, Howard and Goldsman have a history -- A Beautiful Mind, which won scads of awards and was nominated for tons others. I think they'll be able to work together long-term.
  • I'm sure that connection is powering this latest announcement. Maybe Crowe has mellowed as well.
  • WB passes on Imagine's 'Dark Tower'

    Studio decides not greenlight big-budget adaptation of Stephen King series



    The ambitious journey of Stephen King's "The Dark Tower" seven-book series to the bigscreen and TV has hit another setback, as Warner Bros., which had been in talks to take it on after Universal let it go, has also decided not to make it either.



    Ron Howard and Brian Grazer would produce through their Imagine Entertainment banner, with Howard as director and King as another producer. Imagine can still take the project out to other studios, but the latest rejection is a serious blow to the film's future -- when Universal first let go of the film, most insiders around town believed WB was its best chance.



    Neither Warner Bros. nor Imagine had comment.



    Universal, where Imagine has a first-look deal, got deep into planning for "The Dark Tower" before putting it into turnaround in July 2011 over budget concerns. It sat in limbo for nearly eight months before Warner Bros. entered talks to make three movies, plus two limited-run TV parts to bridge the films.



    HBO had been a likely TV partner, as both it and WB are owned by TimeWarner. That no longer seems likely.



    Screenwriter Akiva Goldsman had recently delivered his latest draft for the film's first installment and Russell Crowe had shown interest in playing the lead if Warners gave the film a greenlight.



    Series revolves around gunslinger Roland Deschain, who roams an Old West-like landscape in search of a dark tower, hoping that reaching it will preserve his dying world.
  • Media Rights Capital May Take On THE DARK TOWER



    The company that developed Seth MacFarlane's summer surprise, Ted and Neill Blomkamp's science-fiction film Elysium is very interested in Stephen King's The Dark Tower.



    Earlier today Stephen King's The Dark Tower was dealt a major blow when Warner Bros. decided to pass on the ambitious project. That made WB the second major studio to pass after Universal had the first crack at it. Two doors close and another opens. Deadline is reporting that Media Rights Capital is now in talks to take on The Dark Tower. MRC's co-founder, Mordecai Wiczyk, is said to have a strong affinity for novel series, and since MacFarlane's Ted has been such a huge hit this summer the company is flush with cash.



    The project is backed with some pretty big names. Ron Howard would direct and produce with longtime collaborator Brian Grazer. The project is struggling for backing because of its unusual plan to have three feature films and two limited run TV series. It's going to take one hell of a maestro to pull it off, but Ron Howard is as solid a bet as they come. It also doesn't hurt to have actor Russell Crowe circling the lead role, gunslinger Roland Deschain.



    After the discouraging news that WB passed on The Dark Tower, author, Stephen King has commented on the potential of the big screen adaptation.

    "The Dark Tower, to me, and I’m not unbiased because I’m the writer on this thing, but to me it looks like gold on the ground waiting to be picked up."
  • 'Dark Tower' needs a champion

    Imagine seeking brave partner on Stephen King adaptation



    If Imagine Entertainment wants to get "The Dark Tower" made, it needs a Mark Ordesky.

    When Peter Jackson was looking to set up his ambitious "Lord of the Rings" trilogy at a studio, every major passed -- but then Ordesky championed the prospects of the films to New Line chief Bob Shaye. The risk paid off, with the first film's B.O. funding the sequels; the trilogy cost an estimated $285 million to produce but grossed nearly $3 billion worldwide.



    Imagine toppers Brian Grazer and Ron Howard need that kind of inhouse cheerleader at a studio or film financier for their plan -- unprecedented in its ambition for three films and two TV series -- to get Stephen King's tale of a roving gunslinger trying to save a post-apocalyptic world up on the big- and smallscreens.



    Even if Imagine finds its champion, that person's challenge will be enormous: Securing capital in today's economic climate is different than it was in the late 1990s ahead of "LOTR," and Hollywood's tolerance for risk is significantly lower.



    While Imagine has never publicly disclosed what it would spend on "Dark Tower," sources say the first pic was planned as a tentpole costing $200 million-plus. Assuming a pair of $150 million sequels and likely another $100 million for a pair of connective TV series runs, Imagine would have to convince prospective partners to spend more than half a billion dollars on production costs alone. Capital for production is the hardest kind of funding to raise from investors in the current climate.



    As Variety reported Monday, that was too rich for Warner Bros., the second studio to pass after Universal put "Dark Tower" into turnaround in July 2011. With no traction at the majors currently, "Dark Tower" is currently in the same position Jackson's "Rings" trilogy once occupied: without a studio partner.



    Few companies outside the studios have the capacity to fund such an ambitious project -- and now Imagine is pinning its hopes on Media Rights Capital. It would be a risky bet for the company emboldened by its recent score with the comedy "Ted," which has grossed more than $350 million worldwide, with more territories still to go.



    MRC has never made a project at "Dark Tower's" price point, focusing on pics in the mid-range, along the lines of its upcoming "Elysium." (By comparison, it took the combined firepower of New Line, Warner Bros. and MGM to pony up around $500 million for the first two movies in Jackson's upcoming "Hobbit" series before agreeing to make a third, which will cost another $125 million-$150 million.)



    Most execs aren't willing to shell out that kind of coin for anything, let alone a seven-book series that, even for King fans, is considered a cult property. And screenwriter Akiva Goldsman's latest draft for the film's first installment hasn't been burning up Hollywood, even with Russell Crowe showing interest in playing the lead.



    One potential avenue for MRC and Imagine to pursue would require Imagine to penny-pinch, significantly lowering the budget to better fit MRC's business model of financing properties in order to flip them to the studios. MRC does have a plus in that lacking a corporate parent, it's more detached from shareholder and exec pressure.



    Company works by committing to fund a fully packaged film, then seeking bidders for distribution rights. Those rights need to sell for more than the production costs, so there's a built-in profit before the movie wraps.



    MRC is also known for being generous with backend talent participation, an enticement that could help lower the upfront costs. But talent reps question whether it will be worth committing thesps to an overall deal that could tie them up for several years.



    MRC boasts an inside track with the majors: The company is known for its well-hewn studio relationships and currently has a distribution pact with Universal. It also linked up with Warner Bros. in 2007 to unspool three of its films -- "Shorts," "The Invention of Lying" and "The Box."



    While Hollywood searches for the next big franchise, it's still hard for investors to commit to a multilayered property like "Dark Tower."



    If Imagine wants a backer that will take everything on no matter what, a reduction in price -- or a scaling down of the project to a TV- or movies-only size -- may be even more important. But finding a TV partner to commit to such a long-term venture also won't be easy. When "Dark Tower" was set up at U, the TV series was envisioned as going to NBC, but there wasn't much enthusiasm for the project in part because it wasn't developed directly by Peacock execs.



    All of these challenges indicate how much "The Dark Tower" needs a champion.
  • Given all the false starts, the issues of long term commitments needed for actors playing the principals, and how to deal with Jake staying in a 10 - 11 year old range for the duration of the series I have come to this conclusion:



    The Dark Tower and Pixar would make perfect partners. This approach would solve the actor and Jake issues and would provide Pixar an opportunity to branch out into new territories and challenges.
  • Call this one an unsubstantiated rumor:



    Collider now reports that Netflix Chief Creative Offficer Ted Sarandos has revealed that he has talked to Howard about bringing The Dark Tower to Netflix.



    "I spoke to Ron about it, actually. The last time we talked about it the thing was being kicked about HBO – but it’s no longer there. Once Arrested Development gets through we’ll keep talking about it."



    Read more at http://www.comicbookmovie.com/fansites/JoshWildingNewsAndReviews/news/?a=78648#1AY8f72YDqvfYcuo.99
  • Expectations kept in check.
  • Absolutely. It's an interesting thought -- House of Cards has done quite well for them and has a decent budget (> $4.5 million per episode).
  • After getting rejected by two studios on an ambitious multi-platform treatment of Stephen King’s seminal novel series The Dark Tower, Grazer, Howard, Akiva Goldsman and King streamlined their original ambition to adapt nine volumes into three features and two limited-run TV series. Now, Media Rights Capital is committed to make a single movie with Russell Crowe as the gunslinger Roland Deschain, with more movies coming if the first gets results. This isn’t set in stone, as Grazer tells me that he has just been approached by a Silicon Valley investor willing to finance Dark Tower as originally constructed, Now it’s a matter of deciding what path to take.



    >>> Source
  • Ron Howard and Brian Grazer have been seeking funding for their Dark Tower project at the Cannes Film Festival. The producers have streamlined their ambitious plans in order to find an investor for their Stephen King adaptation, Digital Spy reports citing Deadline.



    Media Rights Capital is to fund one movie based on the seven-volume fantasy/Western saga, with more to come if the first succeeds. Grazer also said that they were in talks with a Silicon Valley investor who is willing to fund the multiple-film project as previously planned. Russell Crowe is in line to play last Gunslinger Roland Deschain in the adaptation.

    The Dark Tower has already passed through the hands of Universal Pictures and Warner Bros.
  • From a recent Empire magazine podcast:

    Empire:  We said at the beginning that you might not have been here had this been a Grand Prix Sunday, but also, equally you might not have been here if The Dark Tower happened for you.  What's the latest with that?



    Howard:  The Dark Tower is something that we're still working on, and we've all sort of taken an agreed vow of silence about the progress, the headway, what we think our timetable is.  I don't think I realized how much media interest there was in the title and how much excitement there was.  It's a fascinating, powerful possibility, and even Stephen King acknowledges it's a tricky adaptation. 

     

    To be honest, from a financing side, it's not a straightforward, four-quadrant, sunny superhero story: it's dark; it's horror.  That edge is what appeals to me, and the complexity of those characters is what appeals to all of us.  I think Stephen King really respects that Akiva Goldsman and myself...that that's what we love about it, and that's what we want to try and get to the screen.  So the answer is, it got delayed in our minds; it's never gone away.  We're working on it, and he's very patient with us. 

     

    Akiva's just gone off and directed a movie, and I'm continuing to work, but the Dark Tower dreams -- the fever dreams -- are still with us.  But we're not going to give it a timetable, because it was always a little bit over-reported in terms of when we thought the start date was, and then it was hugely disappointing when we didn't meet that date, and so forth.  I don't think it's a project that really benefits from being scrutinized in that way.



    Empire:  I'm sure your vow of silence will cover it, but...Stephen King himself appears in The Dark Tower.  Have you thought about how you might tackle that?



    Howard:  Yes!  And I will admit that Stephen said, "I don't have to be in this."  But that's not to say that he won't be!


    >>> Source


  • Quint got a Dark Tower Update from a potential Eddie Dean!


    Quint: Yes. I know it's typecasting a little bit, but you'd be my choice for the part [of Eddie].

    Aaron Paul: Thank you. I've had a ton of meetings on that. I just had a general sit down with Ron Howard, who is a huge fan of the show (Breaking Bad, naturally), which is such a crazy thing to even think that Ron Howard even knows who I am. They're definitely planning on making it.

    Quint: It's such a tough series to crack, man. I don't envy them trying to make it work.

    Aaron Paul: I'm excited. Their goal is to do three films, but also have a television element to it, which will be very interesting. From what I hear, Eddie Dean is a pretty epic, iconic character.

    Quint: You should definitely pick up the books. He's really the heart and clear conscience of the group. Eddie's a really complex and interesting character. He gets to have a great romance... It's a good role is what I'm saying, so don't turn it down when they offer it to you!

    Aaron Paul: (laughs) Definitely will not!

  • I don't know who "The Phantom" is, so I consider this just a rumor, but:

    The Phantom drops this on me: Ron Howard is going to make this with MRC and Imagine for around 60 million or so. And he’s likely doing this next. There’s going to be a TV series as well since it’s MRC and I’m thinking it may end up being at Netflix. 

    Before I could even ask them to elaborate, they had to jump off. But not before saying the most interesting part of the news… at least for me…I hear Liam Neeson is interested.

    >>> Source
  • While out promoting his directorial debut, Winter’s Tale, Collider got the chance to talk to Goldsman about the status of the project.  When we asked him if the film really is finally moving forward, he explained:


    “It’s not officially back on and we will never let it go – until Stephen takes it away from us. 


    Considering the project isn’t officially back on, you’ve got to wonder, how much weight does that meeting between Paul and Howard really have right now?  When asked if the filmmakers are currently making casting decisions, Goldsman gave us a firm no, but laughed and noted: “No, but I love reading about it!”

    Read (and see) more at http://collider.com/the-dark-tower-movie-news-akiva-goldsman/#f8rQLiJ6sfhrxop0.99
  • Stephen King Shines Light On ‘The Dark Tower’ Situation

    The day will come when moviegoers get to scale “The Dark Tower,” the genre-bending epic from legendary author Stephen King — even if that day isn’t coming as soon as some would like.

    Speaking with MTV News on behalf of the new thriller “A Good Marriage,” based on his novella of the same name, King spoke at length about what — and when — we can expect from the upcoming adaptation of “The Dark Tower.”

    image

    The novel series follows gunslinger Roland Deschain’s grueling quest to find the fabled Dark Tower, a place where all universes connect. Movement on the adaptation has oscillated from very fast to very slow, with Ron Howard attached to bring the story to life using a combination of feature films and TV seasons.

    “I love it because it’s so innovative — the idea of using the front story as theatrical tent pole movies, and using the back story of when the characters are a little bit younger as a TV thing,” King said. “To be able to shoot both at the same time, and use these big sets for TV — it’s a very innovative idea.”

    In this case, however, innovative is synonymous with tricky. Howard’s ambitious “Dark Tower” plans date back more than four full years, with major studios like Universal and Warner Bros. passing on the pitch to tell Roland’s story across the big and small-screens — even with Oscar-winning actor Javier Bardem attached at one point.

    “He was perfect,” King said of Bardem. “We were this close to green light. You know how it is in Hollywood. Things puff up like mushrooms after a rainfall — then, all at once, they’re gone.”

    But make no mistake: “Dark Tower” isn’t gone. King isn’t surprised that the project has been “slow-walked,” and that many fans are skeptical it’ll even see the light of day — but he’s patient, and he’s confident, that it’ll see the light of day.

    “It took me 35, 36 years to write ‘The Dark Tower.’ I can wait [for the movie],” King said. “We’ve been close a couple of times. I’m content to see what happens. Sooner or later, it’ll show up.”

  • The Hollywood Reporter says The Dark Tower is now set up at Sony, with a new script.

    http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/stephen-kings-dark-tower-alive-787758
  • edited April 2015
    EXCLUSIVE: Sony Pictures Entertainment Motion Picture Group chairman Tom Rothman has found a franchise to sink his teeth into. Sony Pictures has teamed with MRC to co-finance The Dark Tower, Stephen King’s novel series set in a world woven with magic and revolving around the gunslinger Roland Deschain. Sony will distribute what is planned to be the first in a series of movies. A complementary TV series is also being developed by MRC.

    The new script is primarily based on the first book in the series, The Gunslinger, and the relationship between Roland and Jake. The film is a blend of horror and fantasy. The latest draft of the script is co-written by Akiva Goldsman and Jeff Pinkner. It was totally reconceived by Goldsman and Pinkner from the version that had been previously developed and which took root first at Universal and later at Warner Bros. Goldsman is producing through his Weed Road with Imagine Entertainment’s Ron Howard, Brian Grazer and Erica Huggins, and I believe the author is also in a producing capacity. Pinkner will be exec producer.

    Sony and MRC will go right out after filmmakers with this script, and put this on the fast track that hard-core fans of King’s book have long desired. Numerous stars including Javier Bardem and Russell Crowe have eyed the role of the gunslinger, but that role won’t be filled until after the director is set.

    King, who options his works for $1 and likes to see progress, has been incredibly patient as this mammoth project — it’s his answer to Tolkien’s Middle Earth novels — has taken its time and its twists and turns. He’s sparked about where the project is now.

    “I’m excited that The Dark Tower is finally going to appear on the screen,” he said in a statement. “Those who have traveled with Roland and his friends in their search for the Dark Tower are going to have their long-held hopes fully realized. This is a brilliant and creative approach to my books.”

    Said Rothman: “There are few projects out there that compare with the scope, vision, complex characters and fully drawn world that Stephen King has created with The Dark Tower. I am a giant fan. And, as Stephen himself does, we love the direction that Akiva and Jeff have taken. This is a great opportunity for a director to put his or her stamp on a cool global franchise.”

    When Rothman was set to rise from his perch running TriStar to replace Amy Pascal as chairman, his biggest challenge was to create franchises. All around Hollywood, from Disney’s franchising of Marvel and Star Wars properties, Fox’s 3-sequel Avatar plans and Paramount hiring Goldsman to supervise Transformers sequels and spinoffs for his college pal Michael Bay, the studio business is all about the care and feeding of global franchises, and it is getting harder to find fresh intellectual properties. Rothman has found one with a wide built-in fan base.

    >>> Source
  • Could it be? Is this the moment where it all comes together?
  • My response in the comment section:

    "Great article and excellent comments.

    I would love to see this come to happen and have no problems with this series being adapted. No matter what happens the books will always be there to read and we may get something glorious like another Shawshank, Green Mile, Dead Zone or Misery out of this.

    The biggest sticking point for me about adapting this series - and missed in this article - is how do you do it without Jake aging up? This is a project that will a decade - if not more - to complete. Jake only ages from roughly 9 to 11 years of age over the course of the series. His young age is what makes the story so poignant. Aging Jake up will take a lot of the heart out of the series. 

    I don't know how they are going to tackle this problem but I know it is the one factor I fear the most. I don't want a 17 year old Jake doing the things he does in the final book.

    But I want these books filmed!"
  • New Sony Chief Tom Rothman on His Plan to Get the Studio Back in the Game

    Rothman is also pushing the studio to snap up more novels and best-sellers to adapt. He moved aggressively to close a deal to bring “The Dark Tower,” Stephen King’s series of fantasy novels, to Sony, after an earlier attempt at Universal was abandoned in 2011 over cost concerns. “It’s sprawling and challenging,” Rothman said of the source material, but added that Sony had come up with a “creative solution” that “unlocked the power” of the material, much as Peter Jackson figured out how to make a film from “The Lord of the Rings.”
  • Unconfirmed from Deadline:

    EXCLUSIVE: Nikolaj Arcel is the choice to direct The Dark Tower, the Stephen King novel series set in a world woven with magic and revolving around the gunslinger Roland Deschain. I’ve heard talks will begin shortly toward a deal that will have him doing a rewrite and directing the film. Sony Pictures Entertainment signed on earlier this year to co-finance the franchise with Media Rights Capital–it gives new topper Tom Rothman a strong franchise play–and now it looks like they’re near to naming the helmer who’ll bring this massively ambitious project to life. Sony will distribute what is planned to be the first in a series of movies. A complementary TV series is also being developed by MRC. Imagine Entertainment’s Brian Grazer, Weed Road’s Akiva Goldsman and Imagine’s Ron Howard and Erica Huggins are producing. King is also a producer. That quartet has been involved in this franchise since the beginning, and MRC kept it going when it was between studios.
  • EW can confirm that Nikolaj Arcel will soon enter talks to direct the Dark Tower film. As Deadline first reported, the deal is far from complete, with talks yet to begin, but if Arcel boards the project, he could both direct and rewrite the script. The current version of the film is being written by Jeff Pinkner and Akiva Goldsman.
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