Stephen King’s Dark Tower series has been trying to make its way onto the silver screen for quite some time but unfortunately it keeps ending up in the trash. Part of the reason a film like this keeps getting dumped is because it is just too damn big. The series spans across many different worlds and would require a massive budget to bring to life so studios are very reluctant to put up that kind of cash on a gamble this big. It’s pretty simple, a movie as ambitious as this doesn’t get made without a lot of dough. If you don’t put enough cash into these films you will end up getting something that looks like The Langoliers. I’m a huge King fan, especially of The Dark Tower series so I’m trying to hold back my excitement for this project because every time it seems to be going in the right direction it ends up getting canned. It’s phenomenal story telling and vast world filled with unforgettable characters is something that fans have been dreaming of to be translated into a film.
Universal recently passed on the planned trilogy of films and a two-tv miniseries that would tie them together, but it looks like Warner Bros. might be The Dark Tower’s new home and I honestly couldn’t be happier. The studio is already planning a multi-film adaptation of one of King’s best novels, The Stand, so this seems like the perfect fit. Warner Bros. is no stranger to a massive movie series with just wrapping up with the Harry Potter films, but will they really take a chance on a series that is much different from the general audiences of Harry Potter? Only time will tell.
“First comes smiles, then lies. Last is gunfire.”
Ron Howard has been attached to direct this film from the get go and it looks like he is most definitely still on board. Many people are unsure whether or not Howard can bring this world to life, but honestly, I don’t really care who sits behind the camera, as long as this movie gets made I’ll be satisfied. If you haven’t followed this story in the past then you might not know that Javier Bardem has been tied to playing the gunslinger, Roland Deschain. Much like Howard, this is an odd choice that many fans don’t agree with. Bardem doesn’t fit the look of the character in the books because Roland has always been described to look like Clint Eastwood since he was the main inspiration for the books. Honestly, unless you could get Eastwood from The Man with No Name trilogy than you are going to have one hell of a time finding someone to match that description. Bardem is a brilliant actor and if this all pans out I’m sure he will surprise a lot of people.
Bardem is the only one cast at the moment and even he is a big question mark. The rest of the characters in the book are extremely important to the series and whoever is chosen to play their roles have some massive shoes to fill. Right now this entire project is up in the air. It has been shut down many times before but you never know, this could be the one. The script is finished; all The Dark Tower needs now is a green light and when that happens, everyone is in for one hell of a treat.
Who would you like to see play Roland?
Personally, I’d pick Viggo Mortensen but that is just wishful thinking.
As always, thanks for reading.
