Is it really right to call director Nikolaj Arcel's The Dark Tower an adaptation of the Stephen King novel? Without diving too heavily into spoilers, the film isn't a straight up adaptation of any particular entry from King's 8 novel series. Instead, the few clues we've uncovered seemingly imply that the film's a continuation from where the final novel leaves off.
Regardless, Elba, who plays Roland Deschain aka The Gunslinger, spoke with Favreau (whom he just worked with on The Jungle Book) about what initially drew him to the project and what he's currently enjoying about the ongoing production.
JON FAVREAU: Well, I fancy myself the modern-day Andy Warhol, so Interview magazine... How are you doing down there?
ELBA: I'm good. We're making a very big movie, and I'm doing long hours, shooting guns and whatnot. I'm enjoying it.
FAVREAU: When I worked with Daniel Craig [Cowboys & Aliens, 2011], he said that dressing up and playing a cowboy is universal, not just an American fantasy. Is it something that was appealing to you?
ELBA: [laughs] Yeah, I mean, I used to watch Bonanza. Do you even know what that is?
FAVREAU: Yeah. I guess it took a while for our programs to get to you, because that was before my time.
ELBA: [laughs] Bonanza, man. I've always wanted to try the whole cowboy feel and look, so when I took this role, I was wondering, "Are we going to bring that to life in this character? Is he a real cowboy?" And the answer was no. We had to reinvent that a little bit because the world—it's quite a fantastical world and we aren't making a Western. But there's definitely some characteristics from those great cowboy movies, the Sergio Leone movies and all. I was definitely drawn to it. I've got two smoking guns that just look incredible, and I love to pull them out whenever I can. [laughs]
FAVREAU: I remember the books, and what was cool about it was Stephen King really deconstructed the mythology. So you got all the cool gunfighter stuff, but it felt fresh and new and sci-fi, post-apocalyptic—a little bit ahead of its time actually.
ELBA: It's exciting because it doesn't feel like it comes from any other source. It's not an existing group, like the Marvel films. It feels very original. The guns and fights are really essential to the story, but our director, Nikolaj [Arcel], isn't overcooking it.
This is just a brief excerpt from their chat, to read the entire piece, head over to
Interview Magazine.
After reading Elba's comments are you confident that he'll pull off a convincing Gunslinger? Having read the novels a number of years ago, I honestly never figured the Beasts of No Nation star for the lead role. However, from what Elba states, he definitely seems to have a good grip on the source material. And with the film picking up where the last novel leaves off, Arcel definitely has wriggle-room to inject some of his own ideas and themes that should contain a few surprises for readers of the series.
Photograph by Craig McDean.
PLOT SYNOPSIS:
This heroic fantasy is set in a world of ominous landscape and macabre menace that is a dark mirror of our own. A spellbinding tale of good versus evil, it features one of Stephen King’s most powerful creations—The Gunslinger, a haunting figure who embodies the qualities of the lone hero through the ages, from ancient myth to frontier western legend.
The Gunslinger’s quest involves the pursuit of The Man in Black, a liaison with the sexually ravenous Alice, and a friendship with the kid from Earth called Jake. Both grippingly realistic and eerily dreamlike, here is stunning proof of Stephen King’s storytelling sorcery.
CAST & CREW:
Director: Nikolaj Arcel
Screenplay: Nikolaj Arcel, Akiva Goldsman, Anders Thomas Jensen, Jeff Pinkner, Stephen King (novel)
Cast: Idris Elba, Matthew McConaughey, Tom Taylor, Jackie Earle Haley, Katheryn Winnick, Michael Barbier
PROJECT HISTORY:
2007-2009: J.J. Abrams and Damon Lindelof were attached to a planned adaptation that was set to begin once Lost ended. However, later that year the duo announced they were backing off the project for undisclosed reasons.
2010: Ron Howard and Brian Grazer secured film rights and announced their ambitious plan with Universal Pictures for several films and a television show that would bridge the gap between each film. A release date was set for 2013. Later that year Javier Bardem, Christian Bale and Viggo Mortensen were announced as the frontrunners for the lead role of Roland Deschain, with Javier Bardem eventually winning out. Naomie Harris was also rumored for the role of Susannah Dean but that was never confirmed.
2011: Universal put the project on hold due to cost concerns and eventually dropped it altogether. Later that same year, HBO reportedly signed up to produce the TV portion while Howard and Grazer still searched for a studio to handle the film component.
2012: Warner Bros. expressed interest but with Russell Crowe in the lead, not Javier Bardem. However, later that year Warner Bros. dropped the project for the same reason as Universal. Media Rights Capital quickly stepped in and expressed strong interest in producing a film.
2013: Netflix expressed interest in assuming the television portion of Howard and Grazer's plans and confirmed that more serious talks would occur once Arrested Development finished filming.
2015: Sony Pictures announces a partnership with MRC to film The Dark Tower. Later that year, Arcel was hired to direct.
2016: Idris Elba is cast as Roland Deschain and Matthew McConaughey as 'The Man In Black'. Filming begins in South Africa in April.
RELEASE DATE: February 17, 2017