The Dark Tower

[PensFanInDC]

you just listed my biggest problem with this concept. The first movie being the first 2 books, and the Waste Lands being on TV. IMO, Waste Lands is the best book of the 7, and I would really hate to see a watered down version of it on TV. Now, if it works out where it is a good thing that they are able to take the extra time from a TV series to really capture the minor details, that would be great. But i think it would lose the epicness that a full movie would have.

I agree with you. Besides the 1st book, Waste Lands is also my fave. I'd love for the Waste Lands to get an entire season on tv (If it was HBO or AMC), I'm not really sold on NBC though...

A couple other problems I see:

they are probably going to go for a PG13 rating to get more of an audience

you would think they would want a name actor to carry this thing, is a big name actor going to settle for 2 season of tv?

2 seasons of TV and 3 feature films.

I agree that this has the potential to be so bad it's unwatchable but with that you also get the potential for it be to one of the best adaptation events in film/tv history.

I'm excited to see where it goes.

[Hockeynut!]

The more I think about this, the more I can't get past the idea that Roland is an old, old, old man. I mean, we're supposed to think he's been searching for the towers for maybe hundreds of years (time is odd, there). I don't see how any actor in his 40s or 50s could really pull off that kind of look.

What about Lance Henriksen? He's 70 now and has a very weathered face. He has that gritty, world weary persona. If they decide to go with a "name" actor though, I think they'll really fowl this up.

[eddysnake]

what about Sam Elliott, he's gotta be up around 70?

[Hockeynut!]

Elliott would be interesting. I'm not sure he has the range, but it's certainly possible. I could sort of see Tommy Lee Jones in the role too.

[PensFanInDC]

The more I think about this, the more I can't get past the idea that Roland is an old, old, old man. I mean, we're supposed to think he's been searching for the towers for maybe hundreds of years (time is odd, there). I don't see how any actor in his 40s or 50s could really pull off that kind of look.

What about Lance Henriksen? He's 70 now and has a very weathered face. He has that gritty, world weary persona. If they decide to go with a "name" actor though, I think they'll really fowl this up.

Nah. He's more like THOUSANDS of years old but there is no doubt in my mind that this is exactly what Stephen King thinks Roland looks like:



Too bad that's something like 40 years ago

[PensFanInDC]

I could sort of see Tommy Lee Jones in the role too.

No thanks

[eddysnake]

Nah. He's more like THOUSANDS of years old but there is no doubt in my mind that this is exactly what Stephen King thinks Roland looks like:

Too bad that's something like 40 years ago

yep, I think King even went as far as saying Roland was based around The Man with no name or am I just thinking about the Wolves of Calla story?

[PensFanInDC]

Nah. He's more like THOUSANDS of years old but there is no doubt in my mind that this is exactly what Stephen King thinks Roland looks like:

Too bad that's something like 40 years ago

yep, I think King even went as far as saying Roland was based around The Man with no name or am I just thinking about the Wolves of Calla story?

I know that he got the initial idea for The Dark Tower while watching The Good, The Bad and The Ugly at a theater. I believe Eastwood has blue eyes too. He could still play him. Eastwood is bad ***

[eddysnake]

King talks about the adaptation...

ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: The Dark Tower is such a dense series — did you always think it needed more than a single movie or TV show treatment?
STEPHEN KING: I always thought it would take more than a single movie, but I didn’t see this solution coming — i.e., several movies and TV series. It was Ron [Howard] and Akiva [Goldsman]‘s idea. Once it was raised, I thought at once it was the solution.

What about Ron Howard and NBC makes them a good fit for the franchise?
When working as a director, Ron is very similar to the way I work as a writer. We both tell honest stories that have (I flatter myself) style and substance but not a lot of show-offy frills.

In a perfect world, who would play Roland? Eddie? Susannah? Jake?
The Twilight cast, of course! Just kidding. I haven’t got as far as casting in my thoughts, but when I write about Susannah Dean, I always kind of see Angela Bassett in my mind’s eye. Mostly I just want good people in those parts. Ron Howard will find them, I’m sure.

And who would you want to play?
I’d love to be the voice of Blaine the Mono.

There’s a lot of blood in the series — how much is the TV series going to be censored? It likely would have been easier to join forces with a network without restrictions, à la HBO, no?
I don’t see that as a problem at all! We’ll have just enough latitude to make a great series. I’ve worked in network TV before, and every time I was squeezed a little, it just made me look for creative solutions. Besides, I always like to play in the biggest auditorium available!

http://popwatch.ew.com/2010/09/09/stephen-king-twilight-dark-tower-casting/

[AlexPKeaton]

Casting for this has started.

Viggo is in the running for Roland, but the front runner is the dude from No Country for Old Men, at least according to this blog.



imo, he looks more BA than Viggo.


http://blog.moviefone.com/2011/01/03/da ... n/?_r=true

[eddysnake]

Ron Howard was on Stern this morning talking about it. He said nothing is definite yet, but he was hoping the tv show would work. Also said Viggo and Bardem are in for the running, but there are more than that.

[shafnutz05]

I am so frigging pumped for this

[Hockeynut!]

Aside from the fact that I think he's a little too young, I think Javier Bardem would be an incredible Roland.

[shafnutz05]

Aside from the fact that I think he's a little too young, I think Javier Bardem would be an incredible Roland.

Yeah, and they could easily make him look aged.

[PensFanInDC]

Roland is described as tall and skinny. This dude would have to lose some weight IMO. Remember that King's inspiration for Roland came from Clint Eastwood's Man With No Name.

[knives of ice]

Ron Howard was a Stern today and gave a great funny entertaining interview, he talked about the dark tower series a decent amount

[PensFanInDC]

New book coming out in 2012

http://www.darktowermovies.com/20110311/new-dark-tower-book-due-2012/

[Froggy]

more dark tower isn't necessarily a bad thing, but throwing a book right in the middle kinda rubs me the wrong way. i know you obviously can't add a book after part 7, but...

Spoiler:

it will affect me differently, knowing that jake, eddie, and even oy won't be alive by the end of the story

if there was going to be another book, i would have rather had it just be centered on roland between his flashbacks and his pursuit of walter. i know, i know... graphic novels...

[PensFanInDC]

more dark tower isn't necessarily a bad thing, but throwing a book right in the middle kinda rubs me the wrong way. i know you obviously can't add a book after part 7, but...

Spoiler:

it will affect me differently, knowing that jake, eddie, and even oy won't be alive by the end of the story

if there was going to be another book, i would have rather had it just be centered on roland between his flashbacks and his pursuit of walter. i know, i know... graphic novels...

Spoiler:

The link said "This new story won’t add anything major to the story arc we already know, but will provide us with more depth and knowledge of past and present Mid-World." That's enough for me.

And all the characters are technically alive remember?

[Froggy]

Spoiler:

the other thing that bugs me is doesn't king writing another DT book kinda go against the canon set up in the 2nd half of the series, depending on how meta you want to get?

additionally, i was never really all that curious what happened between topeka and the callas, but that's just me

[PensFanInDC]

Spoiler:

the other thing that bugs me is doesn't king writing another DT book kinda go against the canon set up in the 2nd half of the series, depending on how meta you want to get?

additionally, i was never really all that curious what happened between topeka and the callas, but that's just me

He's also retired more than Mario Lemieux and Michael Jordon combined and that hasn't stopped him.

[shafnutz05]

Yeah, I agree with Froggy here....

Spoiler:

Knowing, as you said, that the characters involved eventually die, it will definitely ruin a little bit of it ofr me. I am generally not a fan of prequels/"midquels", and I don't think this will be an exception.

[eddysnake]

Universal drops out, no movie for you

http://www.slashfilm.com/universal-the-dark-tower/

[Hockeynut!]

I'm disappointed but I can't say I'm surprised. The studios don't want to take on anything original, especially when it's geared toward an adult audience.

[PensFanInDC]

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