In November, rumors arose that instead of killing the new He-Man movie, that they were talking to Kung Fu Panda co-director John Stevenson to helm the movie (Read: ‘Kung Fu Panda’ Director To Helm ‘He-Man’ Movie?). Today, this rumor became reality, as it was confirmed that Mr. Stevenson will indeed make his live-action debut with what’s been called Greyskull but is now apparently being called Masters of the Universe (I vote for the former).
John Stevenson only has the experience directing Kung Fu Panda, so along with this being his first live-action go, he’ll also only be handling his second feature. Fortunately, the man has a ton of experience in the art/animation departments of many well-known movies such as Shrek 1&2, Labyrinth, and The Dark Crystal.
As for the movie, it’s hard to tell what to expect. As we’ve mentioned before, the script review lead us all to believe that it was going to be a very cool, new look for He-Man in a Lord of the Rings-type world, but a lot can happen to a great script over the development period and it could end up just that good, or it could be a cheese-fest. The first draft (the one titled Greyskull) was written by Justin Marks, who also handled the scripts for the Hack/Slash adaptation and the new Street Fighter movie.
In regard to Stevenson and his vision of the project, executive producer Barry Waldo had this to say:
John had such passion that we found ourselves running to catch up with his vision.
No word yet on cast or when the movie might get rolling. Joel Silver is producing.
[Source: Variety]
I fear for this movie. I mean, He-Man was an icon growing up and I never think that the film adaptations can do the originals justice. I hope so. We have a little write-up on DC Comics Deadman which should be done by Guillermo Del Toro. If interested, you can see the article here. Enjoy.
The Rake
http://thefilmnest.com/2009/02/deadman-hobbit-more-to-keep-guillermo-del-toro-busy-for-years/
Comment by The Rake — February 5, 2009 @ 4:48 pm
I’m also worried looks like their taking the cheapest way out. Why can’t they get a writer and a director that grew up watching and playing with the toys. The way it sounds This movie may be rated G. Your target audiance is in there 30’s and many of them have kids now and they don’t want what made MOTU so special to dissapear. STICK TO THE ORIGINAL STORY! In my opinion the MOTU franchise could keep going on the big screen like Transformers if they don’t ruin the story line. Keldor needs to be explained as well as Adam refer to the first cartoon in the 2001 series.
Comment by Anthony — September 3, 2009 @ 9:24 am