Now 'The Dark Tower' Might Star Russell Crowe, if It Ever Gets Made
Ron Howard's latest attempt to get his adaptation of The Dark Tower going: how about if Russell Crowe is in this goddammer?
'Dark Tower' Adaptation Might Happen Again
Ron Howard's on-again-off-again adaptation of Stephen King's The Dark Tower series may be back on thanks to Warner Brothers' need to fill the empty spot in their fantasy league left by the departing Glasses Wizard.
'Dark Tower' Series Probably at HBO, Movie Part They'll Figure Out Later
While doing press duties to convince the world that Ben Stiller, Eddie Murphy, and tower robbery is a winning combination, a freshly gelled and blow-dried Brian Grazer this weekend claimed he and Ron Howard's epic Dark Tower is still a go, and on the television side, it will be paid for and aired by HBO.
The Stephen King adaptation had originally been planned as an NBC-Universal project, with a string of Universal films being supported by a limited-run NBC series. It would have been heavily reference in your textbook's chapter on synergy. Unfortunately, the suits at General Electric got pretty skittish about making a huge fantasy western once they heard how much all these shadowy spires would cost them, and they abandoned the project.
But according to Grazer, he and Howard have now managed to chop the budget down by a cool $45 million, allowing the deal with HBO and, they figure, making a movie deal with some a film studio all but inevitable. He also seems to think Javier Bardem won't mind these delays, and will still be up for the lead role of Roland Deschain just as soon as some lucky studio will fund a vast, elaborate, still-very-expensive fantasy western. What is the hold up, guys?
Ben Affleck Maybe Doing 'The Stand' and a Whitey Bulger Movie with Matt Damon
Clearly threatened by Matt Damon's promise to go off and be a director with some other Massachusetts-raised guy, Ben Affleck has already taken steps to reassert himself as both our preeminent Damon-collaborator and the dominant directorial force of that coupling.
Speaking to GQ (via), Damon revealed that he and Affleck are working with Warner Bros. to do a biopic on Whitey Bulger, the recently-arrested mobster that served as the basis for Damon co-star Jack Nicholson's part in The Departed. Damon will reportedly star as Bulger, while Affleck will direct, boldly asserting, "Look, Damon, if you get to be the awesome spy guy, I get to be the one people think of as a surprisingly effective director, OK?"
Also supporting that argument: yet another Warner Bros. directing project for Affleck. According to Deadline, the studio wants Affleck to head their plan to turn Stephen King's The Stand into a movie or three. That project was once being set up as a rival to NBC-Universal's plans to adapt The Dark Tower into a film trilogy and limited-run TV series, because what better to fight a really long, post-apocalyptic Stephen King adaptation than another? Plans for the Dark Tower adaptation were recently dropped once director Ron Howard gave a price tag for all those towers, but according to producer Brian Glazer, it's still "gonna get made." We may yet get two really long, post-apocalyptic Stephen King adaptations! But where is our Alvin and the Chipmunks-style Cujo?
Never Mind About That 'Dark Tower' Trilogy + TV Series
I hope no one was really looking forward to Ron Howard and Akiva Goldsman's adaptation of Stephen King's The Dark Tower, because, sorry, we aren't doing that anymore. The ginger director and his lamentable screenwriter had been hoping to stretch King's seven-plus books across a trilogy of films and multiple NBC Miniseries Television Events, and even had Javier Bardem ready to star as the series' gunslinging lead. Now, though, after delaying the film back in May, Universal has canned the whole thing, having suddenly come to the realization that it will cost a lot of money to make so many Dark Towers. Howard, Goldsman, and producing partners Brian Grazer and Steve King are now free to take the project to another studio, but seeing that Howard--seemingly aware that no one was going to want to make all these Dark Towers--already set up a Spy Vs. Spy film and a movie about vrooms vrooms for himself to direct, I wouldn't count on that happening. Those hoping for an epic, multi-film Stephen King story on screens are just going to have to wait until CBS gets their act together and does that The Stand adaptation they've been talking about. Or, hey, maybe this is a sign it's time someone gets to work on some Stand By Me sequels. "We found another dead body, guys! Ut oh, Kiefer Sutherland is older!" Think about it.
Javier Bardem Offered 'Dark Tower' Lead
Deadline is reporting that Javier Bardem has been offered the lead in Universal's planned adaptation of Steven King's The Dark Tower. The seven-novel series, thought to be unfilmable (I just made that up, but considering it's seven books long--not counting the prequel comics and planned eighth book--I bet some people have said it's unfilmable), tells of an Eastwood-esque gunslinger, Roland Deschain, and his epic journey to find the titular spire. Ron Howard is committed to direct, and plans to stretch the story across three films and likely a limited NBC series, drawing some comparisons to Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings trilogy in terms of scope. Also in terms of nerd things with towers.
And while we're on the subject of Peter Jackson, The Hobbit is delayed yet again because that guy's got a perforated ulcer. I'm betting on bees swarming Ian McKellen next.
