Dark Tower Tv/Film adaptation incoming

Skab

http://www.firstshowing.net/2010/09/08/dark-tower-adaptation-lands-unprecedented-film-tv-deal/

Discuss.

Hung Bunny

I'm kind of excited for it, and will hold off on judgement until I've seen some concrete picture/video, but I have the same problem I have with the rumoured movie adaptation of the Sandman comics, that being that I don't think any actor can pull off the main characters. That's not to say a talented actor couldn't do a pretty good attempt, but they are both so otherworldy and defined to exist within their medium that it won't be a true representation.

Tiger Burning

Wow. It's ambitious, I'll give it that. I'd love for it to be successful, but it's a hard story to tell even without the format shenanigans.

Duffel

I'm looking forward to seeing "episode" 1. However, the book series just got terrible toward the end when Stephen King wrote himself into the corner to end all corners. Maybe some other writers can fix it?

Barcardi

Duffel wrote: »

I'm looking forward to seeing "episode" 1. However, the book series just got terrible toward the end when Stephen King wrote himself into the corner to end all corners. Maybe some other writers can fix it?

The ending is hinted at in the first book quite a bit, or at least the ending ending... not so much books 5-6.

Actually i dont even remember book 5-6. But yea, should be interesting how they play with it, but I hope they do not beyond

removing king from his own narrative it.

Mojo_Jojo

Films and a series seems like a strange combination.

Barcardi wrote: »

Actually i dont even remember book 5-6. But yea, should be interesting how they play with it, but I hope they do not beyond

removing king from his own narrative it.

Yes, I think that was the point where it becomes clear he's lost any grip on the story.

reVerse

I don't like what they're planning to do here. Because TV series are broadcast at different times in different parts of the world, in case of Finland usually a year or two later than when it originally aired. Movies on the other hand are imported almost immediately, with a delay of only a few days. So, this whole thing is very probably going to be out of sync in some countries.

But I'm sure it'll be great for you Americans.

Igort

Hung Bunny wrote: »

That's not to say a talented actor couldn't do a pretty good attempt, but they are both so otherworldy and defined to exist within their medium that it won't be a true representation.

The only actor I could ever imagine pulling off The Gunslinger is Clint Eastwood, but he's way too old for the role now.

Though the idea of a movie trilogy bridged by a few seasons of a TV is very interesting, and could work really well.

yurnamehere

Igort wrote: »

Hung Bunny wrote: »

That's not to say a talented actor couldn't do a pretty good attempt, but they are both so otherworldy and defined to exist within their medium that it won't be a true representation.

The only actor I could ever imagine pulling off The Gunslinger is Clint Eastwood, but he's way too old for the role now.

Though the idea of a movie trilogy bridged by a few seasons of a TV is very interesting, and could work really well.

Until the TV series gets canceled halfway through the first season.

Duffel

Barcardi wrote: »

The ending is hinted at in the first book quite a bit, or at least the ending ending... not so much books 5-6.

Actually i dont even remember book 5-6. But yea, should be interesting how they play with it, but I hope they do not beyond

removing king from his own narrative it.

King actually went and re-wrote sections of the first book to line up with what he had decided the ending was going to be. I'm not sure which version you read; the new version became standard in the early 2000s, and you can only get the only version at used bookstores these days. I vastly prefer the old version, even if it doesn't allow the ending to make sense. I just think the prose and overall atmosphere is much more interesting; The Gunslinger is an excellent stand-alone story.

I never actually finished book 7 (or even bought it). I heard it was less than impressive. Song of Susannah was one of exactly two books I've put down before I finished it because I thought it was terrible. The plot just got so contrived I couldn't deal with it. People developing psychic powers for no apparent reason and then using those to fill plot holes and what have you.

MichaelLC

Igort wrote: »

Hung Bunny wrote: »

That's not to say a talented actor couldn't do a pretty good attempt, but they are both so otherworldy and defined to exist within their medium that it won't be a true representation.

The only actor I could ever imagine pulling off The Gunslinger is Clint Eastwood, but he's way too old for the role now.

Though the idea of a movie trilogy bridged by a few seasons of a TV is very interesting, and could work really well.

Viggo Mortensen? Thomas Haden Church?

So three movies and two TV series for the whole thing? Jake is only going to die like, 4 times now.

Oh, Spoilers, I guess.

wwtMask

Eh, I'll be fine with it so long as they also adapt the comics, which expanded on some things that were only mentioned in the books.

Deebaser

Duffel wrote: »

I'm looking forward to seeing "episode" 1. However, the book series just got terrible toward the end when Stephen King wrote himself into the corner to end all corners. Maybe some other writers can fix it?

Explain please.

ben0207

The series completely fell apart at the end, I'd agree.

What the Crimson King turned out to be, and RF's death, and the kid with a magic pencil etc

A real shame because the first 3 or 4 books show such potential. (though one is an incredibly boring story set in Roland's past that take a thousand pages to get anywhere.)

Duffel

Deebaser wrote: »

Duffel wrote: »

I'm looking forward to seeing "episode" 1. However, the book series just got terrible toward the end when Stephen King wrote himself into the corner to end all corners. Maybe some other writers can fix it?

Explain please.

I don't want to spoil the "size" section at the end of DT1 for the people who haven't read it, but...

basically, the crux of the DT series is that the Tower is the axis on which all existence in every universe imaginable revolves. There's no author in the world that could do justice to that kind of buildup.

Arch

Duffel wrote: »

Barcardi wrote: »

The ending is hinted at in the first book quite a bit, or at least the ending ending... not so much books 5-6.

Actually i dont even remember book 5-6. But yea, should be interesting how they play with it, but I hope they do not beyond

removing king from his own narrative it.

King actually went and re-wrote sections of the first book to line up with what he had decided the ending was going to be. I'm not sure which version you read; the new version became standard in the early 2000s, and you can only get the only version at used bookstores these days. I vastly prefer the old version, even if it doesn't allow the ending to make sense. I just think the prose and overall atmosphere is much more interesting; The Gunslinger is an excellent stand-alone story.

I never actually finished book 7 (or even bought it). I heard it was less than impressive. Song of Susannah was one of exactly two books I've put down before I finished it because I thought it was terrible. The plot just got so contrived I couldn't deal with it. People developing psychic powers for no apparent reason and then using those to fill plot holes and what have you.

wait, explain how the "old" version doesn't allow the ending to make sense; that is the only one I have ever read, and I finished the series. The ending made sense to me....what did he change?

Duffel

Like I say, I never read DT7, so I may be making assumptions here. I just know that he edited DT1 so that the

circular

ending in the final book made more sense.

Arch

Duffel wrote: »

Like I say, I never read DT7, so I may be making assumptions here. I just know that he edited DT1 so that the

circular

ending in the final book made more sense.

I just read wikipedia and it explained it; shoulda done this first

Forar

Last year, at the prompting of my girlfriend at the time, I read this entire goddamned series in like 2 months. The early books aren't too hard to plow through, but by the time you get to the 800+ page ones, it's quite an effort at times.

Honestly, while I enjoyed it there are some sections that felt long just for the sake of being long, like some kind of meta-"the characters are drudging through tedious bullshit for six months, so the reader should feel like they are too" kinda stuff. Yes, I'm referring to the counting. Oh so much counting.

I'm intrigued that someone will try to put it to screen, but I wish them luck. They're going to need it.

Doodmann

From the wikipedia it sounds like everything he changed was an improvement. I never read the original version.

Visti

No Clint Eastwood == Little interest.

mrdobalina

Hung Bunny wrote: »

I'm kind of excited for it, and will hold off on judgement until I've seen some concrete picture/video, but I have the same problem I have with the rumoured movie adaptation of the Sandman comics, that being that I don't think any actor can pull off the main characters. That's not to say a talented actor couldn't do a pretty good attempt, but they are both so otherworldy and defined to exist within their medium that it won't be a true representation.

This. There's an incredible parallel between the problems with adapting both works. The characters are too established to be cast, and the world design would be neigh impossible to put on film.

How do you cast Mordrid? How can you make a visual representation of Flagg that does him justice? Maybe I'm just being a fanboy, but the Dark Tower series was pretty unconventional in it's genre hopping and a good deal of the backstory was dealt with by hooks in other works (Insomnia, Eyes of the Dragon, Hearts in Atlantis, etc).

Although if they made the whole Blain sequence inspired by Supertrain, that would be awesome.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gUERtAe73NI&feature=player_embedded

Sentry

I still think Christopher Walken would make a good Flagg. He does good whimsy+insanity.

I think this project is crazy ambitious, but could be absolutely exceptional. There's a lot of filler in those books, and using TV to fill in the gaps is actually a really good idea. I'm sure the movies will stand alone as a trilogy and the tv show will just fill in their journey stuff. Let's face it, most of Wolves of the Calla would make a far better tv show then a movie.

As for the books quality, they do take a noticeable dive... but honestly, with the build up it would hard for them not to. Writing yourself into your own story is just odd... it really took me out of the last few books the first time I read them. That being said, the seventh book has some amazing parts in it that shouldn't be missed. The court of the Crimson King was pretty awesome.

saint2e

Colour me giddy with excitement. Perhaps the TV series could cover the "Drawing of the Three" stage of the books.

Arch

Christopher Walken would be an amazing Flagg

Grombar

I'd be down with bringing back Jamey Sheridan from the Stand miniseries. If not to play Flagg, then someone else; maybe the Crimson King at the end.

Delzhand

Arch wrote: »

Christopher Walken would be an amazing Flagg

Please no. I can't see him as anything but a meme these days.

wwtMask wrote: »

Eh, I'll be fine with it so long as they also adapt the comics, which expanded on some things that were only mentioned in the books.

I'd love this, but I think it's a bit too straight fantasy-western for producers to devote this kind of ambitious multi-venue project. They're probably going to focus on the genre-bending story of the books.

Nucker

Gary Oldman gets my vote for Flagg.

Josh Hartnett for Eddie Dean...I don't know if Zoe Saldana would look old enough for Susanah, so if not her, then Halle Berry.

Find some little kid for Jake, Oy would be done by CG I'm sure.

Roland is a tough one. I know he's supposed to look older, but there aren't a whole lot of stereotypical gunslinger actors who are old but not too old right now.

Google Imaged "actor" and just looked through the first few pages. Robert Downey Jr. didn't look horrible, but I don't know if this is really his thing. Ron Perlman seemed downright hilarious, but who knows? Maybe he could pull something off. George Clooney? Doesn't really have a Roland-y face, I think.

Like I said--Roland would probably be a tough one, and it needs to be a combination of presence and acting ability.

Also? Totally fucking stoked for this to happen.

Doodmann

I always imagined flagg as looking young like most mythological tricksters and baddies. On the other hand Gary Oldman might be awesome.

reVerse

In the Eyes of the Dragon they mention that Flagg looks like he's in his forties.

Disco11

Ron Pearlman is fantastic in Sons of Anarchy.

Duffel

I'm not really seeing Ron Perlman as Roland. Christopher Walken is way too old to be Flagg. He's supposed to be a "man of no age" which means he could be thirty or he could be fifty-five. Walken is nearly seventy.

Josh Hartnett as Eddie Dean actually seems like a really good fit.

Roland's a hard character to cast. Even young Eastwood doesn't seem like he'd fit perfectly and Roland basically is young Eastwood (I wouldn't be seeing him as Roland, I'd be seeing TMWNN/Josie Wales). It's got to be somebody who is comfortably doing the kind of acting where you spend long stretches of time not speaking and when you do speak it's something very blunt and direct.

Josh Brolin would be my immediate pick, based on his role in No Country for Old Men where he basically does that very thing, albeit in a very different setting.

EDIT: Sam Eliott definitely needs to be cast as Roland's Dad in the flashbacks.

Double EDIT: Actually, if we're going to put Ron Perlman in it, he would be excellent as Cort, Roland's old teacher. R. Lee Ermey has the personality for it, but Cort's supposed to be stout and bald.

Big Dookie

I think Daniel Craig might make a good Roland. He has those great blue eyes and is fairly thin. If they made his hair a bit darker and longer, I could totally see him as the Gunslinger.

Mojo_Jojo

As this is also a TV series, I think we can rule out bigname actors. It just can't have the sort of budget you'd need for that.

Jakarrd

I think Geoffrey Rush would make a pretty decent Flagg.

Big Dookie

Mojo_Jojo wrote: »

As this is also a TV series, I think we can rule out bigname actors. It just can't have the sort of budget you'd need for that.

Maybe, but remember these are also going to be huge Hollywood movies (Ron Howard is pretty much in the top-tier of Hollywood directors). It sounds like the TV Series attached to it isn't going to be typical of most TV Series, and will have a bigger budget, bigger names, etc. I wouldn't be surprised if at least 2 or 3 of the actors/actresses in both the movie and the series are A-List material.

Green

OH MY GOD

Usually I am instantly wary of any King adaptation, but they've been on a good streak recently so I'm pretty excited right now

If they cast Stephen Lynch as Eddie Dean I may literally die of happiness

Nucker

Duffel wrote: »

Double EDIT: Actually, if we're going to put Ron Perlman in it, he would be excellent as Cort, Roland's old teacher. R. Lee Ermey has the personality for it, but Cort's supposed to be stout and bald.

Nail on the fucking head, that would be perfect.

Nucker

Clive Owen as Roland might work.



This sort of a look, but with longer hair and a cowboy hat.

Edit: would need to get him some blue contacts, though. Roland did have some very blue eyes.

Evil Multifarious

this is going to be terrible and you all know it

there is no way they will successfully transfer the quality of the first novel or two that made them interesting to screen, unless, like, the coen brothers direct it

and there is no way they could redeem the last few books, which were just tragically poor and another great example of how stephen king fumbles and lurches his way into a deus ex machina or complete non sequitur for every ending

Duffel

I'm not going to give up hope yet when all we've got is an announcement. Say what you will about Stephen King, but he's no egotist when it comes to his scripts, and he's shown in the past that he's perfectly willing to let other writers come in, fix his mistakes and tighten up his loose ends.

If they weren't going to put quite a bit of effort and money into it, Ron Howard wouldn't be involved in it.