Dark Tower Movie speculation

[SHEEMIEE]

bugger.......i just wanted to put my tup'ney bit in for the character Sheemie.......a perfect choice is this fine actor>
Attachment 11998

But alas i just found out he died a few months back at the fine old age off 96!

RIP norman wisdom!!

[Elemeno P]

. . . Stephen King's "The Dark Tower" with Javier Bardem prepping in Astoria. Ron Howard directs . . .

Read more: http://www.nypost.com/p/pagesix/cind...#ixzz1LULmc9C2

My daily google trolling.

[jones18]

So, what is happening Ms. Mod?

U weighs 'Dark Tower' turnaround

Movie trilogy and interlocking TV series could be shopped

By Rachel Abrams, Justin Kroll


Universal's "Dark Tower" movie trilogy and interlocking TV series, seen as a hugely ambitious project from the start, may wind up being too big for the studio's appetite.Sources tell Variety that in the past few days, the project, based on Stephen King's sweeping seven-book-and-counting series, has run into budgetary complications that have caused Universal execs to rethink original plans. Insiders expect U brass to meet in coming days to decide whether to put the project into turnaround, whereby producer Imagine Entertainment could shop it to another studio, either to partner with Universal or take over entirely.
To be clear: Sources tell Variety that as of Thursday, Universal is moving ahead as if the project is going forward. The studio had no comment.
Ron Howard unveiled plans in September to adapt "The Dark Tower" for three films -- at least the first of which he plans to direct -- bridged by a pair of TV series. Universal soon came on as a distributor, given Imagine's production deal with the studio; NBC (or an affiliated cable net) was expected carry the TV component.
Javier Bardem's deal to play the lead role of Roland Deschain is nearly closed, while Howard is still eyeing thesps for other roles. Howard and Brian Grazer are producing through Imagine, while Akiva Goldsman is set to write the script.
With a project of this size and scope, it wouldn't be unusual for any studio to weigh its risk-sharing options -- or pulling out -- at this stage of development. And "Dark Tower" isn't the only major project that Universal has recently reconsidered. "At the Mountains of Madness," which had Guillermo del Toro set to direct and Tom Cruise circling to star, was scrapped on the brink of lensing after U calculated that it would struggle to make money with its $150 million budget and R rating.
That project went into hibernation in March, not long after the newly minted NBCUniversal CEO Steve Burke was in Universal City for meetings with NBC and Universal Pictures brass.
King's "Dark Tower" epic has been long pursued for screen adaptation, but the series' length and scope -- rooted in a post-Apocalyptic realm resembling the Old West as well a parallel modern-day world -- has been a tough nut to crack for scripting and production planning. Before Imagine announced its adaptation plans, J.J. Abrams and "Lost" co-creator exec producer Damon Lindelof had optioned rights from King for $19 (a key number in the "Tower" universe). But they weren't able to find a take on the material that satisfied their ambitions.
Nonetheless, the Imagine team and U felt confident they had a workable vision. In announcing their plans for "Dark Tower," companies set a May 17, 2013 target date for release of the first film.

http://www.variety.com/article/VR1118036473

[jones18]

Another article with bad news...


Sources: Universal's 'Dark Tower' Trilogy on Brink of Turnaround Source: The Hollywood Reporter Thu May 05, 2011, 10:00 pm EDT





The ambitious plan of Universal, Imagine Entertainment and NBC to turn Stephen King’s The Dark Tower opus into a film trilogy with a television supplement has hit a major snag.
Spearheaded by Imagine’s Ron Howard and Brian Grazer as well as writer-producer Akiva Goldsman, Dark Tower was to have been a film trilogy with a TV component in between the movies. Javier Bardem was in negotiations to star in the Howard-directed first movie and the first TV component, with options for the other two movies; in April, Mark Verheiden came aboard to co-write the TV component with Goldsman.
But the unprecedented project was never officially greenlit, and there are rumblings now that the plan might be grinding to a halt.
Two sources close to the project tell THR that Universal’s new owners at Comcast have scrutinized the plan and have tentatively decided to put the project into turnaround, mainly due to budgetary concerns. The sources also say that the final portion of the project has been found creatively lacking.
Imagine's Michael Rosenberg, however, vehemently denies that the turnaround order has been given.
Sources say a final decision is expected soon on whether to move forward, seek additional financing partners or cancel the project entirely.
If Dark Tower does become available to other studios, it won’t be a cheap project to take on. Insiders say that Universal paid $5 million for the rights. That doesn’t include the hefty fees for Howard, Grazer and Goldsman, not to mention Oscar-winner Bardem’s fees for not only the movie but the TV show (he’d be paid more than the average TV star).
Warner Bros. is one potential home for the project. The studio vied for Dark Tower rights last year and is already developing The Stand, King’s post-apocalyptic opus. Insiders say Warners would at least kick the tires on Dark Tower.
Another potential home is Sony, for whom Imagine and Goldman made The Da Vinci Code and its sequel, Angels & Demons.

Kim Masters contributed to this report.

[Moderator]

Have known about this for about a week but couldn't say anything publicly and can't really add much now either. All I can say is that Ron Howard is working hard to secure the financing that will be necessary to move the project forward as he is very committed to making it happen. If I get the thumbs up to post anything else, I will do so.

[Elemeno P]

Gotta love those quotes.....

"final portion of the project has been found creatively lacking"

"Warners would at least kick the tires on Dark Tower"

Meh...at least this will give me more time to get my wife to read the series.

[FXguy]

Because Universal Studios thinks that a movie based on the game, "Battleship", is more marketable (it comes out in 2012):

http://www.fangoria.com/index.php?op...head-for-tower

[Elemeno P]

Universal's pockets aren't deep enough.

I say just leave it....sounds like they want to fudge with the ending.

[jones18]

'The Dark Tower' Staff Put On Hiatus As Filmmakers, Studio Address Budget Problems

Universal Pictures has put pre-production staff on hiatus as they discuss ways to bring down the budget of the ambitious adaptation of the Stephen King novel series The Dark Tower. Talks are ongoing between studio brass, director Ron Howard and his Imagine Entertainment, and writer/producer Akiva Goldsman about how they will proceed. The plan was to make three movies that would star Javier Bardem, with TV miniseries in between each film. The plan was as ambitious as New Line's gamble on The Lord of the Rings years ago. One thing for sure, even though staffers have been told there's a chance they will return, the plan to start production in September is scratched. If Universal decides the proposition is too rich for its blood -- it recently halted At the Mountains of Madness because it was an R-rated $150 million film -- then the next move would be to bring it to Warner Bros, where Goldsman's Weed Road has its deal. Word that Universal would put the project in turnaround began circulating last night, but both the studio and Imagine denied it. They're still denying it. We've held our tongue until now, when staffers have been told to stop working.

http://www.deadline.com/2011/05/dark...ddress-budget/

[Baz]

Universal you should either commit or dont. I think this story deserves more respect than a half arsed will they wont they type thing. Or give it to someone pioneering enough to give it everything it deserves